


Beautiful Aggression

by VVSIGNOFTHECROSS



Category: La casa de papel | Money Heist (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:48:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 38,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25240378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VVSIGNOFTHECROSS/pseuds/VVSIGNOFTHECROSS
Summary: An alternate exploration of Season 4 of La Casa De Papel
Relationships: Denver | Daniel Ramos/Mónica Gaztambide, Raquel Murillo/Professor | Sergio Marquina, Rio | Aníbal Cortés/Tokyo | Silene Oliveira
Comments: 82
Kudos: 139





	1. Tokyo

**Beautiful Aggression**

**Chapter 1: Tokyo**

_There are moments where the pressure builds up and it feels as if you’re going to burst. That’s usually when something big happens, something that makes you forget the thing that you were going to rage about. So, it was with us. When those bullets shattered the glass, and hit Nairobi, the pressure burst through, but instead of killing one another, we worked together._

Tokyo ran up the stairs as quickly as she could, following Stockholm’s cry right to the governor’s room. She swore as she saw Nairobi lying there, blood pouring out of her. “What happened?” She asked.

Stockholm looked at her and said. “She went to the window; she was on the phone and she saw her son. A sniper shot her.”

 _Fucking cops._ Tokyo thought to herself. “Right we need to lift her up.” As she went to get Nairobi’s feet, she was pushed aside by Helsinki who took Nairobi’s feet.

“I’ll lift her arms.” Bogota said. Tokyo and Stockholm both moved to the side as the two giants lifted her up.

Denver came in then with one of those moving stretchers that ambulances always seemed to have, he moved it to the centre of the room and Bogota and Helsinki gently lowered Nairobi onto it.

“What happened?” That was Palermo, Tokyo turned around and looked at the leader of this heist, so similar to Berlin but so different in many ways. His eye patch made him look ridiculous not terrifying, but the way he held himself scared her.

Tokyo looked at Stockholm who was stood there shaking. Tokyo held her hand and said. “Nairobi was on the phone, we think to the inspector, when she saw something and then she got shot.”

Palermo swore. “Shit. So, they planned this.”

“Why?” Denver asked. “Why would they do that?”

Before either she or Palermo could respond, Bogota spoke. “I don’t care why they did it, all I care about right now is finding out a way to stop the bleeding.”

Tokyo saw that he had kept his hands over the wound. “We’re going to have to remove the bullet.” She said then, the realisation hitting her like a tonne of bricks.

“You’re mad.” Palermo said. “We can’t do that; we’d injure her more.”

“We have the training, we practised on that pig, and we’ve done mock demonstrations.” Tokyo snapped back.

“No, we need to ask the Inspector for a doctor or ask her to let Nairobi be taken to the hospital.” Palermo replied.

“Are you mad?!” Tokyo all but yelled. “The Inspector lured Nairobi to the window so that she could get shot. She’s not going to let an ambulance come and take her. And besides, even if she does, she’ll just arrest her anyway.”

Nairobi groaned and Bogota spoke. “We need to make a decision now.”

“I think we need to ask for a doctor or an ambulance. We can’t operate on her ourselves.” Palermo said.

He made to move toward the radio, which forced Tokyo to draw her gun. “Palermo!” She said warningly.

“Tokyo, what the fuck are you doing?” Palermo asked, though his voice was calm.

“I’m not going to let you sell our friend out.” Tokyo snarled.

“I’m not selling her out you idiot, I’m trying to save her.” Palermo said.

“By asking the woman who shot her to help?” Tokyo replied.

She heard someone else pull out their gun and turned and felt her eyes widen as she saw Denver pointing his gun at her. “Tokyo, don’t be stupid, you know he’s right.”

Tokyo snorted. “You can’t be serious. You know this is madness.”

Denver opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, the radio crackled. “Palermo, report.”

Palermo didn’t take his eyes off her as he made his way to the radio, he picked up the comms device and said. “We’re in a bit of a standoff, Professor.”

“Why?” The Professor asked, something didn’t sound right about him, what it was Tokyo didn’t know but it made her feel uneasy.

“Nairobi has been shot and she’s bleeding quite profusely.” Palermo said calmly.

There was a moment of silence, then the Professor said. “You will need to get the bullet out. I will try and ask our Doctor to get into the Bank, but that will take time. You’re going to need to do the initial procedure yourself.”

“Are you sure?” Palermo asked.

“Yes, if we ask the Inspector for assistance, she’ll disregard that and send men in to arrest all of you. Nairobi will die on the way to prison, and I cannot have that.” The Professor said, the way he said it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

“Very well, are you asking Pakistan to assist us?” Palermo asked.

“Yes.” The Professor said. “I want Tokyo leading the surgery, she was the one with the steadiest hands during training.”

Tokyo felt herself blush at that, but she nodded all the same. “Very well, Professor. What is the situation outside?”

There was silence again, during that silence, Tokyo looked at Denver and whispered. “Go and get the equipment.” She looked at Rio who looked as if he’d seen a ghost. “Rio, go and get Matilda, she was a nurse.” Rio nodded and both he and Denver hurried out of the room.

The Professor finally replied and as he spoke she could tell then that something terrible had happened. “Lisbon was captured.”

“What?!” Palermo exclaimed.

“I don’t know how, but she was captured and she….” here the Professor’s voice broke and she could tell that he was trying hard not to cry, her heart broke for him, she might not like Lisbon, but she cared for the Professor. “She was murdered in cold blood.” Something about that didn’t make sense. Why would the police murder her in cold blood? She was a former cop, surely they’d want to parade her before the press and the public?

Before she could say that though, the Professor spoke once more. “We are at war, ladies and gentlemen. They are going to try to throw everything at us. We cannot break. I will work on ensuring your escape route is secure.” With that the radio went dead.

Tokyo looked around the room and she could tell everyone was downbeat. Nairobi was injured, Lisbon was dead, this heist was not like the other one, it was going very badly. But, still, something about the way the Professor had spoken made her think that he had been lied to. She put that thought to one side though as Rio returned with the nurse, Denver came with the medical equipment and the laptop. Rio got the thing working and then the procedure began.

_As I followed the procedure laid out for me by a Doctor in Pakistan, I found myself wondering just what game Inspector Sierra was playing. She had tortured Rio, and she had now faked Lisbon’s death. Either she was mad, or there was something else going on here._

_The Professor had said that taking the Bank of Spain would force the government to release Rio for fear of the secrets kept within the Bank being released. But so far, the only things they’d found had been things that the press had speculated on for years. Nothing that was bad enough to cause this, the deliberate assassination attempt of a member of the heist, and the murder of a former cop without trial._

_These thoughts kept whirring around in my head whilst I removed the bullet from Nairobi and then stitched her up. Partway through the connection to Pakistan got cut, no doubt because of the Inspector and her nefarious means. Once the procedure was done and Nairobi had stabilised, we got in touch with The Professor._

“How is she?” The Professor asked.

“Stable.” Tokyo said speaking into the comms. “The connection got cut halfway through though.”

“Yes, that was Inspector Sierra’s work.” The Professor said.

“So, what next?” Tokyo asked, looking at Palermo who was staring at Nairobi.

“A truce has been negotiated for 24 hours. So, you’re going to need to increase production of the pellets in that time. But also, bear in mind that they’re going to try other ways to undermine that truce, so I think it is time for Plan Ares to go into effect.” The Professor said.

“Plan Ares?” Tokyo asked, looking at Palermo who was walking towards her now.

“Yes. You know what to do. Both you and Palermo.” The Professor said.

Tokyo kept looking at Palermo as he stood next to her and with a big grin on his face said. “We do, Professor.”


	2. Palermo

**Chapter 2: Palermo**

Plan Ares, the failsafe The Professor had insisted on including in case a scenario like this happened. Palermo had always admired how the man thought two or three steps in advance, and now, even when he was mourning the death of his girlfriend, he was still so clear headed. There hadn’t been any sign that the cops outside were going to try anything, at least, not when he’d looked outside the window during Nairobi’s surgery. He’d have thought they’d have tried to knock down the doors to the Bank, but no. Clearly the Professor had kept his cool and phoned them to negotiate a truce.

Palermo walked out of the Governor’s room, took a right turn and then turned left, coming to the room where they slept when nobody was on duty. He removed his jumpsuit took off his boots and then started putting on the suit and trousers that he would need to make Plan Ares look convincing. As he did so, he found himself thinking back to the day when that plan had been created.

_“Palermo, Tokyo, wait behind will you.” The Professor said, his voice calm._

_Palermo didn’t get up from his seat, and Tokyo remained standing where she was. Palermo saw her exchange a look with Nairobi as the other woman left the room. Once everyone else had filed out, The Professor spoke._

_“I thought about what you said, Tokyo, and I think I have found a way to reach a compromise.”_

_“What are you talking about?” Palermo asked immediately, not liking the tone the Professor had taken._

_The Professor looked him right in the eyes and in that moment, Palermo was reminded of Berlin, or Berlin as he was when he was determined to do something. There was a glint in the man’s eyes and steel in the way he held himself that told Palermo that he wasn’t to be trifled with now. “You have worked on this plan for years, Palermo. Had Berlin been here, the two of you would have been the men I’d have entrusted to carry it out.” The Professor paused, Lisbon came forward and put a hand on his shoulder and he continued. “But Berlin is not here, and you have admitted yourself that you care about the plan and nothing else.”_

_“As any professional should.” Palermo said._

_“Regardless, the plan will not stand up against human emotions. Especially when they realise what we’re doing.” The Professor said. “They will not do what Lisbon did and try and develop some sort of relationship with us. They will be under pressure to try and prevent something bad from happening. Therefore, they will try and sow division and dissent. They will target each member of the group if they can, but they will start with Nairobi.”_

_“Why?” Tokyo asked._

_“Because, she is the link that they think they can press to break the chain.” Lisbon said. “She has a son who she hasn’t seen in years. She might be the most dedicated of all of us, but she will have a weak moment when she realises that she might get to see her son again if she does something for the police.”_

_“So, you think they’ll try and turn her?” Tokyo asked sounding disbelieving._

_Palermo knew what the Professor and Lisbon were getting at though so he spoke before either of them could. “No, they won’t try and turn her, they’ll try and remove her to get us fighting one another.”_

_“Exactly.” The Professor replied._

_Palermo saw Tokyo’s brow furrow in confusion and so elaborated. “They’ll lure her to a place where she’ll be exposed and then they’ll try and injure her or kill her. And as she’s lying there dead or injured, they’ll expect us to call for help from them. They’ll make some sort of demand and expect us to fight about it.”_

_“And in the time, it takes you to fight about it, they will send men to try and break into the Bank.” The Professor said._

_“So, what you must do is let us know when something like this happens, as soon as it happens. That way I can try and negotiate a truce with the police.” The Professor said. “They will either ignore my request and go ahead, at which point you will need to prepare to escape using Plan B, or they will agree and we will have time.”_

_“Okay, but why have you asked us to stay behind?” Tokyo asked, clearly getting impatient now._

_“You and Palermo are going to work together to make it seem as if we are divided.” The Professor said._

_“Why?” Tokyo asked._

_Palermo raised an eyebrow as well, this was most unusual. “Yes, why?”_

_The Professor grabbed a picture from his desk and put it on the board. “Because of this man. The Head of Security for the Governor of the Bank of Spain. Retired Colonel Gandía.”_

_“Oh, him.” Palermo said._

_“Yes, him.” The Professor said._

_“Him?” Tokyo asked._

_“If he does not come out with the papers in the first five minutes, you are going to have keep him as a prisoner and he is going to try and escape and he will try and kill you if he escapes. Given his rather shady past, the police and the government are going to be uneasy about him being on the loose. But they are going to need him, if their plans fail. Therefore, I need you both to follow Plan Ares.” The Professor said._

_“Plan Ares?” Tokyo asked._

_“If Nairobi gets shot, you are to argue with one another about what to do, then when it is agreed that you will operate on her, Palermo you are going to get changed into a suit and make as if you are going to leave the Bank. Tokyo, you are going to try and stop him, but you are to refuse to listen. Naturally, Helsinki will try and stop you, and you will let him succeed, Palermo.” The Professor said._

_“Okay…. why?” Palermo asked. Not surprised that the Professor knew about him and Helsinki, the man seemed to have gotten more alert to such things since the last time they’d met, no doubt thanks to Lisbon._

_“Because Gandía will be watching and listening. You are to create the impression that all is not well within the group, that will give him even more incentive to try and break free. When you are convinced that you have caused enough of a scene, you are to walk away with Helsinki to a separate place away from the prisoners. Gandía will see this and think he can escape as the team is too divided to be able to stop him.” Lisbon said._

_“And if he does escape, what then?” Palermo asked._

_“He will try and communicate with the outside. There will be a panic room that he will go to. Let him get there, we will try and intercept his communication. Once that is done, he’s going to try and hunt you down. The moment he does, you let us know and we will put the pressure on from outside.” The Professor said._

_“You want us to let a trained killer who will want to kill us all wander around the Bank?” Tokyo asked sounding terrified._

_“Yes.”_

_“Why?”_

_“Because the longer he is outside, the more of a danger he is to the government. He is a loose cannon, and loose cannons tied to the establishment never end well.” The Professor said._

Palermo fixed his tie, then grabbed the suitcase and walked to the fridge, taking out a packet of muffins and putting them on the table. He then put the suitcase on the table and opened it, then picked up the muffins and put them inside the suitcase. He locked the suitcase, and put it in his left hand, with his right hand he checked the pocket to see that the fake explosive was there, feeling it in the pocket he smiled and walked out of the room.

As he got to the stairs, he saw Rio coming toward him. “Palermo, where are you going?”

“I’m going out.” Palermo replied with forced bravado. “You lot are a bunch of fucking nutcases and I’m done.

Rio went to put a hand on his shoulder but Palermo brushed him off, he walked down the steps and got to the door when he heard Tokyo ask. “Where are you going?”

Palermo turned around, holding the suitcase up and in as loud a voice as he could, said. “I’m done. It’s clear you lot don’t want to get out of here alive. I don’t know about you, but I would actually like to live.”

Rio came down the steps after him, looking between him and Tokyo. Tokyo didn’t miss a beat. “You can’t do that.”

“Why not?” Palermo asked.

“Because we have a plan, and you are the leader of that plan. You cannot just walk out of here now.” Tokyo said.

“I can and I will.” Palermo said, turning around as he did so he heard a gun cock. He laughed. “Are you going to shoot me, Tokyo?”

“I will if I have to.” Tokyo said.

Palermo grinned, turned around and pulled out the fake explosive. “You do that, we all die.”

Tokyo pointed her gun at him. “You won’t give me much choice.”

“Tokyo!” Rio exclaimed. Rio then looked at him and said. “Come on, Palermo, you don’t have to do this.”

Palermo laughed. “Oh but I do. My authority has been challenged, and Tokyo here doesn’t want to live. So, why should I suffer for it?” He looked at Rio and added. “You know I’m right.”

Rio raised his gun and pointed it at him. “I’m not letting you go out there.”

“What’s going on here?” Another voice asked, this one deeper. Palermo looked passed Rio to see Helsinki coming down the steps.

“Palermo’s turned traitor.” Tokyo snapped.

“Palermo….” Helsinki said looking at him reproachfully.

“Don’t come any closer, Helsinki.” Palermo said holding up the fake explosive higher.

Helsinki ignored him, walked down the steps, moved his gun to the side and came to stand before him. “If you’re going to do something, do it now.” Before Palermo could respond, Helsinki had enveloped him in a hug, Palermo felt his will to continue play acting slip, and he cursed himself for his weakness. He felt rather than saw Rio come down and take the suitcase from his hand. Helsinki leaned back and took the fake explosive from him as well and then stepped back.

“Take him away somewhere separate.” Tokyo commanded.

Helsinki grabbed him by his collar and hauled him off, passed the prisoners, and as they walked passed Gandía, Palermo could have sworn he saw the man’s eyes gleaming with malicious intent.


	3. Professor

**Chapter 3: Professor**

_The shot rang out over the wire, echoing around in his head. The feeling of complete loss and fear, of his worst nightmare coming true hit him like a freight train. He slumped to his knees. She was dead, she was dead. Raquel was dead. They’d murdered her in cold blood. Why he didn’t know, but whoever had given the order had broken an unwritten rule, one that his father had taught him and Andres. No matter who you were or what you were, you got a trial, didn’t matter who you were, you got a trial. They’d broken that and murdered Raquel, and his world was breaking._

_How was he supposed to tell her mother and daughter that she was dead? Her mother would never understand and Paula? She’d be heartbroken. He regretted bringing her on this venture, she should have stayed behind in Palawan, that way she’d never have gotten involved. He’d broken his own rule about no personal relationships and now it was tearing him apart. How he’d gotten to the hangar he didn’t remember. Marseille had found him somehow and then they’d gone from there._

“Professor.” The radio crackled, Sergio picked up the microphone.

“Go ahead, Tokyo.”

“It’s done, Plan Ares has been initiated.” Tokyo said.

“And how did everyone take it?” Sergio asked. He’d deliberately kept that plan to only himself, Raquel, Tokyo and Palermo. The fewer people in their gang who knew, the more realistic the reactions would be.

“As you said they would. Rio is panicking, Denver is furious and Helsinki is mournful.” Tokyo replied.

Sergio nodded, Rio would no doubt be suffering from PTSD, he would not be in a fit state to guard the hostages, which was why Sergio had deliberately instructed Tokyo that he was to be her fellow guard when it was her time to watch over the hostages. He’d not anticipated that Rio would break up with her though. That was the problem with people, they did things that made no sense and then wondered at the consequences.

“Where did you keep him?” He asked.

“In a separate room, adjacent to where we sleep.” Tokyo replied.

“Good, did you see whether Gandía was watching the whole process?” Sergio asked, it was crucial that Gandía had seen this, otherwise their plan would not work.

Tokyo snorted. “Oh he saw alright; he was practically gagging to be let go.”

“Good.” Sergio replied. “Who do you have guarding him now?”

“Rio.” Tokyo said.

“And who is protecting Nairobi?” Sergio asked. From what research, he’d done on Gandía, he’d learned that the man hated anyone who wasn’t like him, something that being tortured in Afghanistan had no doubt done. From what Palermo had told him about their initial exchanges with the man, he’d specifically targeted Nairobi for his virulent behaviour.

“Bogota and Helsinki now.” Tokyo said.

“Good.” Sergio replied.

The line crackled as silence fell between them, Sergio desperately trying not to think of Raquel and how her body was probably lying in that farm house being eaten by the crows. Tokyo spoke then, causing him to blink. “Professor, you are sure that this is the right thing to do?”

“Yes.” Sergio replied. “Gandía is the key to all of this. He is a loose cannon, and he has a record. Once he escapes and informs the Colonel and Inspector Sierra that he has escaped, they will want to use him to get to us. They won’t formally break the truce themselves, but they will use Gandía to hunt you down to kill you. Once he escapes you must phone me and let me know, then I can have our friends release what we know about him to the public.”

“Okay.” Tokyo said, she didn’t know what information he had on Gandía, indeed not even Raquel had known. Only he and the hackers in Pakistan knew, for they’d been the ones to get the information. “So, what do we do until he escapes?”

“You keep making the gold pellets and you look after Nairobi and ensure none of the hostages tries to be a hero.” Sergio replied.

Tokyo snorted. “That will be fun, considering Arturo Roman is here.”

Sergio swore, Tokyo laughed and Sergio then asked. “What has he been doing?”

“He tried to molest Stockholm and he antagonised Denver.” Tokyo said. “Other than that he’s been silent, dangerously so.”

Sergio’s mind started whirring. He’d kept an eye on Roman after the events at the Royal Mint. The man had made quite the name for himself by writing an exaggerated account of his role during the heist, and had become quite rich for doing so. But he lived alone, his wife having divorced him, he never saw his sons anymore either. He was a loser in a way Sergio had never been. Which meant he had little to lose. “Keep an eye on him, and if he tries anything, kill him.”

Tokyo gasped, and Sergio became aware of what he’d just said. “You are sure, Professor?”

“I am sure, Tokyo.” Sergio said deciding to become more authoritative and willing to do what was necessary. Raquel had died because he’d not done this before. “We cannot have two loose cannons running around.”

“Very well, Professor.” Tokyo said. There was another moment of silence in which Sergio heard the gunshot again and he closed his eyes to try and silence it. Tokyo broke the silence by asking him a question he’d never have expected from her. “How are you feeling, Professor?”

Sergio had every intention to lie and say he was fine, but something in him told him to be truthful and therefore he said. “I am heartbroken. They killed the love of my life.”

There was an unusual hesitancy in Tokyo’s voice as she replied. “Did you actually see them shoot her?”

Sergio closed his eyes, hearing the gunshot again. “No, I was running to the building…. I told her to tell them where I was…I told her to tell them that I surrendered.”

“Did you go to the place where she had been hiding?” Tokyo asked.

“No, I turned around and ran.” Sergio answered, feeling ashamed, he’d not even gone to look at her body. Like a coward, he’d just turned and ran.

“So, you didn’t see her body?” Tokyo asked.

“No.” Sergio said.

Confidence came back to Tokyo’s voice then. “Then, is it not possible that you heard only what they wanted you to hear?”

Sergio opened his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“Think about it Professor, they must have known that you were listening to what was happening. They must have known you were running towards where Lisbon was. They must have wanted you to come charging to where she was, thinking she was dead, so that they could capture you also. But you didn’t go to where she was, and I think the police are not foolish enough to kill a former officer, especially without a trial. I think they wanted you to think she was dead so you’d make a mistake.” Tokyo said.

Instinctively, Sergio wanted to deny that, he’d heard the gunshot and the silence that had followed, he’d felt it in his gut. But another part of him was shouting at him to remember what he himself had told the gang during the planning for this heist. _They will play on your senses and emotions and get you to hear what they want you to hear, you must remember that with the police nothing is ever what it seems._ He thought on Tokyo’s words, and he found that he could not find fault with them. After all, the police would have known that he was coming to where Raquel was, they would’ve expected him to come charging toward them, had he not been a coward he would have done, and this whole thing would be over. But here he was, and Tokyo was right, the cops would never have actually executed her, not without her resisting, and Raquel hadn’t been resisting.

“She’s alive.” He whispered, then louder. “She’s alive.”

“Exactly, Professor!” Tokyo said in response, sounding excited.

“She’s alive!” Sergio said again. Raquel was alive and he was going to find her and rescue her. This wasn’t over. He took a deep breath then said. “Keep things stable in there, Tokyo, I’m going to get Lisbon out and then we’re going to get you all out of there.” With that he put down the microphone and called out. “Marseille!”

The big man appeared. “Professor?”

“Lisbon is alive.” He said. “And we’re going to find her.”


	4. Lisbon

** Chapter 4: Lisbon **

****

The gunshot echoed in her head, it had brought up some very bad memories for her and she had found herself gasping for air whilst being hauled away from the farm. They’d put a mask on her and thrown her into a van which had then started and driven off. Whilst she’d been sat in the van, she’d thought over what had happened. They’d made it seem as if she had been killed, she’d heard them telling one another that she’d been resisting arrest, no doubt fully aware that Sergio was listening. Why they’d done that hadn’t made sense to her at the time, but now it did.

They were clearly hoping Sergio would do something reckless and expose himself, something that would enable them to find him and bring him in. Raquel found herself hoping and praying that The Professor was in control now. As much as she thought The Professor was a cold-hearted jerk, she knew he was better able to handle these situations, Sergio, the man she loved, was kind, soft-hearted and not in any way cut out for this sort of thing. If Sergio thought about her, then they were doomed. The Professor needed to be in control, and given that he’d not come charging into the barn, Raquel hoped that meant the Professor was indeed in control.

Of course, by faking her execution, the police had just given Sergio more ammo to use against them. She had no doubt he’d figure out she was alive, and when he did, he’d do all he could to prove the police had gone against their own code. That recording on their microphones would help him, she was sure of that.

The van stopped, she heard the doors open and then felt herself being led out of the van. She stumbled as she got out, but felt someone right her. As they led her to wherever she was going, she heard people shouting and screaming, some people were even singing. It was when she heard the faint melody of ‘Bella Ciao’ that she realised where she was. _Why have they brought me to the tent outside the Bank?_

Alicia must be incredibly desperate if she’d ordered her brought here, right in front of the Bank where the team were. Either desperate, or trying to provoke them. She knew the moment she’d entered the tent, because the thing they’d put over her face was yanked off her and she saw light and countless people looking at her.

The first person she recognised was Angel. He was stood there, staring at her, his hair white. “Angel.” She said.

He looked away from her and she was forced forward, stopping before a short fat man who glared at her. “Take her into the question room.” She was forced to her right and shoved through a small flap, she stumbled into the room and was forced to sit down in a terribly uncomfortable chair, the men who’d forced her through disappeared then and she was left to sit by herself.

Raquel could vaguely hear a television playing outside, and as she strained to hear what it was saying, the flaps were pushed back and a woman entered. With her auburn hair, pale white skin and curious green eyes, Alicia Sierra was a force to be reckoned with. Raquel had always known that. They’d been friends once, before Alicia had gone off to Barcelona and the Basque Country, where rumours had started emerging about her. How true they were, Raquel didn’t know, but now that the woman was stood before her, she felt a slight tinge of fear.

Alicia stood before her and smiled. “Raquel.”

“Alicia,” Raquel replied, she then looked at the woman’s belly which protruded before her. “Congratulations.”

Alicia smiled. “Thank you, I’m due any day now.”

That surprised Raquel. “So, why have you taken on this case?”

“Because I want to catch you lot, and now you’re here, I think my job is going to get a lot easier.” Alicia said, pulling up a chair and sitting down, keeping a fair distance between the table and her stomach.

Raquel looked at her and asked. “Why?”

“Well, you’re here, and The Professor isn’t, which suggests either he’s abandoned you, or he’s going to try and rescue you. If he tries to rescue you, we will catch him.” Alicia said, Raquel didn’t reply, she just kept looking at Alicia, who then continued. “Now, tell me, why the Bank of Spain?”

Raquel had an answer prepared for this, she and Sergio had prepared for something like this, for either one of them being caught. Play for time, give them enough to keep going, but not enough to know the full plan. “To make a statement and to get your attention.”

“Because of Mr Cortes?” Alicia asked.

“Yes.” Raquel replied.

“Well, you’ve certainly got our attention, but what are you going to do now? You’re in here, the Professor is on the run, your little gang is on its own.” Alicia said.

Raquel smiled, she couldn’t help it, this was just like being back in the Academy. Alicia making a bold prediction only for Raquel to come in with some realism. “I think you’ll find you’re wrong there.”

“How so?” Alicia asked.

“You’re assuming that we have not planned for this.” Raquel replied. “Come now, Alicia, when have I ever not been prepared?”

“Did you plan on joining the Professor and his little gang of thieves?” Alicia asked.

Raquel didn’t answer, knowing that Alicia would keep speaking. “You’ve got hostages in there who are innocent, why aren’t you letting them go? Why are you still holding people hostage when you’ve got what you came for? Mr Cortes is with you now.”

“We both know that nothing would be solved if we had left the moment Rio was brought to us.” Raquel answered.

“So, what you’re just in there to make a statement?” Alicia asked.

“Yes.” Raquel said. “To show the people out there that we are people of principles.”

“Principles?” Alicia replied sounding shocked. “You’ve hijacked the Bank of Spain, causing the economy to go into freefall, an economy that only just recovered from what you did at the Royal Mint, may I remind you. How exactly is that principled?”

“We both know that if the government wanted to they could’ve sorted the economy out much sooner than they did.” Raquel said. “They gave a ridiculous sum of money to the banks and the stock market a decade ago, and you’re honestly telling me you believe they couldn’t have done the same for the people whose blood, sweat and tears makes this country work?”

At first, Raquel had thought Sergio’s speeches were nonsense, but the more time she’d spent with him at that monastery and seen how passionate he was, and how much the gang believed in him, she had slowly come around to his point of view. What they were doing was needed, the country needed change, and if the videos they’d seen of people using their masks and jumpsuits in protests across the world was any indication, the people agreed with them.

Alicia sighed. “You do know that’s not going to make anything easier for you.”

“I know, but it wouldn’t have been easy for me, even if I’d said everything you wanted me to say.” Raquel said.

“You know Alberto is being sent to look over the van you left abandoned.” Alicia said suddenly.

Raquel didn’t even blink. “He’s the best forensics expert in the country, it makes sense.”

Alicia shrugged. “I know, all I’m saying is that he has it out for you. So, if there’s anything you want to tell me that might make it easier for you, now’s the time to tell me.”

Raquel raised an eyebrow. “Like what?”

Alicia smiled then, and that smile terrified Raquel. “Oh, I don’t know, something like where the Professor would go now?”

Raquel took a deep breath and then replied. “I don’t know.”


	5. Rio

** Chapter 5: Rio **

****

_They sat him down, the table was pressing up against his stomach. The woman looked at him and smiled. “Mr Cortes, come now, we know you know. So, just tell us what we want to know and it’ll all be over.”_

_Aníbal looked at the woman and blinked, why did they think he knew where The Professor was? He didn’t know the man’s name; he didn’t know anything about the man. And even if he did, he wouldn’t sell the man out. Not the man who’d given him everything. He cleared his throat. “I don’t know.” He said._

_“That’s not going to help you.” The woman said, he saw her nod at someone and before he knew it his head was being shoved into the table again and again, until it hurt and the woman had ordered it stopped. He looked up, blinking furiously. “Where is he?”_

_“I don’t know.” Aníbal said._

_This time, there was no head hitting the table, but the woman gestured to someone and a bowl of water was brought forward and placed before him. Then his head was grabbed and shoved into the water. He struggled to breathe, he fought and struggled, but the man whoever he was kept his head firmly lodged inside the bowl of water. The longer he was in there, the harder it became to breathe, slowly he felt his eyes start to close, and at that moment he was yanked out of the bowl. He came up sputtering for air._

_“Where is he?” Was the question._

_“I don’t know.” Aníbal replied. His head was forced back into the bowl. This happened a further four times before the woman clapped her hands and the mask was brought out. He was forced to put the mask on, he could barely see what was happening. He heard something switch on and then felt the gas come barrelling into him. He started coughing and spluttering. He couldn’t breathe properly, he couldn’t see, was this how he was going to go? Was he going to die here, alone and afraid, without Tokyo there to hold him? He didn’t want to die._

_“Rio!” He heard someone say. “Rio!” He couldn’t respond, his mouth was shut._

_“Rio!”_

_The woman before him turned into a devil, grinning wildly. “Rio!”_

Aníbal shot up, breathing heavily. He looked around wondering where he was, he felt a hand touch his shoulder and wheeled around to his right, he blinked once, twice, on the third time his vision cleared. “Stockholm?” He whispered.

“I’m here. You’re safe.” Stockholm replied looking at him with concern.

“What happened?” He asked.

“You started screaming…I woke up and saw you thrashing about…was it the dream again?” Stockholm asked.

Aníbal looked down at his hands which were shaking uncontrollably, he looked up and saw Stockholm looking at him with sympathy. He hated that, he hated being looked at as if he were weak and in need of help. He didn’t need help-that was a lie-he needed, he didn’t know what he needed, still, something about Stockholm made him answer. “Yes. It’s always the same dream.”

“Oh, Rio…” Stockholm said moving toward him. Aníbal knew he should move away, Stockholm was with Denver, and he respected Denver too much to allow this, but again something about Stockholm made him feel okay being hugged by her. As his head lay on her shoulder he said.

“I hate this.”

“Hate what?” He heard her ask.

“I hate feeling weak. I hate waking up screaming from nightmares that keep happening. I hate that that woman is never going to be punished for what she did. I hate how I feel.” Aníbal said. And then in a very small voice he added. “I hate myself.”

He felt Stockholm move back and he saw her look at him. “You’re not weak, Rio.”

Aníbal snorted. “You’re just saying that.”

“No, I’m being deadly serious. You aren’t weak. You could have gone and told them whatever they wanted to hear, even if you didn’t know everything, you could have told them something, and you didn’t. You held on until The Professor could force them to bring you home. And even then, you didn’t ask to be released and returned to wherever you wanted, though you’d be well within your rights, no, you came here and you’ve stood with us. That takes an incredible amount of bravery.” Stockholm said.

“Then why do I feel like such a failure?” Aníbal asked.

“Because what they did to you was traumatic.” Stockholm said. “What they did to you would make anyone feel bad. But Rio, you have to remember you’re not on your own. You’re with your family. We all care for you, and we’re all here for you.”

Aníbal nodded, he knew that deep down, he knew that, but some treacherous part of his mind kept telling him that they all hated him. After all, they’d all been pulled from their comfortable lives because of him. “I’m sorry.” He said then.

“What for?” Stockholm asked.

“For dragging you all here.” He replied. “I know you were all living comfortable lives in paradise, and then I had to go and get myself caught, ending all of that. I’m sorry.”

He felt like he was going to cry so he looked away from Stockholm, his father had always told him that men didn’t cry, especially in front of women. “Rio, look at me.” Stockholm said. Reluctantly he turned and looked at her. He didn’t see anger or pity there; he just saw someone trying to help him. She put a hand on his cheek and said. “You have nothing to be sorry for. You’re family, we help family, you know that. You would’ve done the same for any of us.”

Aníbal nodded. “I…thank you.”

“De nada.” Stockholm replied.

Aníbal shifted slightly then, he was up now and he was scared of going back to sleep, thankfully, Stockholm didn’t seem as if she’d be going back to sleep either, so he tentatively asked her. “How are you doing? I know this must be quite the change for you, given that last time you were a hostage.”

Stockholm sighed. “I…well, it is very different naturally, and it’s very stressful.” Aníbal raised an eyebrow. “Well, it’s a different sort of stress. That time I didn’t know whether I was going to be killed by someone in the gang, or if Arturo would do something foolish and I was falling in love with one of the people keeping me hostage. This time, well, I need to get out of here to be with my son, but I’m also worried because of Denver.”

“What do you mean?” Aníbal found himself asking. “What’s wrong with Denver?”

Stockholm shook her head. “He hasn’t done anything, nothing’s wrong with him. I think it’s just, I’m realising now how different we are.”

“What do you mean?” He asked.

“Well, when we were in the Mint, he was so very caring and gentle, and he stayed that way when we were in paradise, but now, well now it’s like something else happened. He’s become aggressive and he almost killed Arturo.” Stockholm replied.

Aníbal noticed the hitch in her voice at that and asked. “Are you worried that he’s going to be like that when we get out?”

Stockholm nodded. “I…. I don’t know. I think a part of me knows that he won’t be like that, he’s been nothing but sweet and kind with Cinci, he dotes on him. But, seeing him like that in here, it’s scared me.”

“I get it, you’re seeing a side of him you’ve never really seen before.” Aníbal said. “But you’ve got to remember this is a heist, it’s stressful, everyone’s acting under pressure and their personalities are being magnified to the extreme. Denver hasn’t changed, he’s just under a lot of pressure, and he’s no doubt worrying about you and him getting out of here alive.”

Aníbal looked down and saw that his hands weren’t shaking now, that was a relief. “I know, it’s just…I don’t know.” Stockholm replied.

“I think you should talk with him.” Aníbal said, looking up at her. “You’re going to be manning the forges, later right?” Stockholm nodded. “So, talk to him then. Make him see your point of view, hear his point of view. And deal with it together. You can’t go about at loose ends.”

Stockholm smiled. “You sound as if you’re speaking from experience.”

Aníbal grinned. “I am.”

“Well, maybe you should speak to her as well then.” Stockholm said.

“I will, if you will speak with Denver.” He replied.

“Deal.”

“Deal.”


	6. Stockholm

** Chapter 6: Stockholm **

Sunlight broke through the blinds and made her blink. Monica rubbed at her eyes and tried not to think about Cinci and whether he missed her, she knew why she’d done this, she couldn’t have any regrets now. If everything went according to the Professor’s plan, they’d be out of here soon, and then she and Cinci would be reunited. The sound of mumbling drew her eyes downward to where Rio was sleeping with his head on her lap.

He hadn’t meant to fall asleep like that she knew, but their conversation had gone on late into the night and then she’d woken up at one point to find him resting on her lap and she’d not had the heart to wake him. But now she needed to use the bathroom, so, she gently raised herself up, grabbing a pillow from close by and placing it under Rio’s head, she looked at him, he seemed to be sleeping peacefully now, other than the odd bit of mumbling, so she presumed it would be okay for her to go.

She walked to the table, grabbed a toothbrush and some toothpaste and walked to the door, opening it just a fraction, slipping out and then walking down the hallway, turning right when she came to its end, opening another door, locking the door behind her. She took a deep breath, then looked around the bathroom. It was a simple one. A sink and a toilet. She put the toothbrush and toothpaste on the sink, and slowly unzipped the jumpsuit. Once it was completely undone, she undid her boots-clearly she was still tired-once they were off, she lowered the jumpsuit to the floor and sat down.

As she did her business, Monica found herself thinking about what Rio had said. He was right, she had to talk to Daniel, she couldn’t let this get between them. She knew he wasn’t a bad person, it was just that the way he’d reacted to Arturo had scared her. It had been so sudden and so quick, like a lion that had been waiting to pounce. And then there’d been that business with that boy, where he’d shot him. What that had been about she didn’t know, but it had scared her as well. She’d tried ignoring him, but that hadn’t been easy. She still loved him, of course she did. He was so kind and caring, and gentle, and Cinci loved him as well, she had to give this another go.

Once she was done, she cleaned herself up, then put the jumpsuit back on, put her shoes back on and tied them up, washed her hands, cleaned her face, then brushed her teeth. She looked at herself in the mirror. _I look rough._ She thought to herself, which was understandable, no makeup, no showering, just water on her face and toothpaste and the occasional spraying of deodorant when she got the time. Well, it would have to do. Monica cleared her throat, turned, unlocked the door and walked out.

As she got to the break room, she saw Denver standing there. Suddenly, her heart quickened, she took a breath and cleared her throat. Denver looked at her and in that moment she remembered why she’d fallen in love with him. His eyes always sparkled with life, when he smiled, it was the eyes that told her he was truly happy. Looking at him now, she saw that he was worried, his eyes looked from her to the break room.

“Monica…I…” He began.

“Denver, please, can I talk?” She asked, using his code name rather than his actual name because she didn’t want to give anything away to anyone who might overhear them, she didn’t know whether they’d be arguing over this soon.

“Of course.” Denver said.

“Look…” she began, unsure of just what she wanted to say. She cleared her throat again and then said. “Look, I know things have been tense between us for a while now, and I just wanted to say that I know you didn’t mean to scare me, and I know you’re frustrated and nervous, it’s just, it was just surprising to me that’s all. Seeing you like that, because you’re usually so calm and kind and I don’t know it was just scary.”

The words came out of her in a hurry and once she was done, Monica looked at Denver and saw his eyes widen. “Monica…Stockholm, I’m sorry. I know that I scared you, and I’m sorry. It’s just when I heard what Arturo had tried to do to you, I saw red, and I let my anger get the better of me. I…” He cast his eyes downward then. “I didn’t mean to scare you, and I know you defended yourself, it’s just, something inside me snapped when I saw him and heard what he tried to do to you.”

Seeing him like that, Monica felt her heart ache, and for a moment she felt angry with Rio and Tokyo for having to go and be irresponsible, she buried that thought though and moved forward and touched Denver’s arm with her free hand. “I know, I know.”

He looked at her then and said. “I promise you, I won’t do anything to scare you again, and I know that I came across as a complete arsehole at the monastery. It’s just, I was and I am terrified of losing you. I lost my father in the Royal Mint, and I felt so broken afterwards, you and Cinci helped me get through that, and I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. I was scared, I am scared. I can handle anything that gets thrown at me, but the thought of losing you? That terrifies me.”

Monica moved her hand from his arm to his cheek. He closed his eyes briefly and then opened them again. “You won’t lose me, Denver.”

“You don’t know that.” Denver replied.

“I know that. I promise you now, you won’t lose me. You and me, we’re in this together until the end.” Monica said, repeating something Denver had said to her once when they’d been in Thailand.

In a very small voice, Denver replied. “Until the end?”

Monica smiled. “Until the end. I know you didn’t mean to scare me like that, I just…next time you’re feeling frustrated or scared, talk to me, okay? Together we can handle anything, but if you don’t talk to me I won’t know how you’re feeling, and I’ll not know how to help you. Can you do that? Can you talk to me?” She knew that Denver’s father had not been a great talker, Denver had told her that, Monica’s parents had been the opposite, before they’d died, they’d always encouraged her and her sister and brother to talk about how they felt, and she felt she’d become a better person because of it.

“I promise.” Denver said. “As long as you talk to me as well. I know things are going to get very tense over the next few hours, and I want you to know that you can talk to me as well. We’re married after all, that’s what we’re supposed to do.”

Monica nodded, feeling tears form at the corner of her eyes. “I promise I will.”

Denver smiled, then shifted nervously. Monica grinned and leaned up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. She hummed contentedly as he kissed her back, the kiss deepened and then they pulled apart.

“I love you.” He whispered, pressing his forehead to hers.

“I love you, too.” Monica replied, perhaps things would be alright after all.


	7. Nairobi

**Chapter 7: Nairobi**

_Ágata found herself standing in a field, where this field was she had no idea, but here she was. The sun was shining and it wasn’t too hot. She looked down and found herself wearing a red dress, her favourite red dress. She looked up and saw a small figure standing in the middle of the field. Something in her told her that she should go to this figure, and so she did. She put one foot in front of the other and walked as quickly as she could to get to the middle of the field. As she walked, she felt a pain in her chest, why was her chest paining?_

_The grass had been cut recently, it had that fresh smell that all cut grass seemed to have, it was a pleasant smell, and made her smile. The small figure remained where they were, and as Ágata got closer to them, she began to recognise the figure. With his curly hair and his raised shoulders-she’d always been telling him to lower his shoulders-her son Axel was stood with his back to her._

_The moment she got to him though, he turned around and smiled. “Mama?” He asked._

_“Axel!” Ágata exclaimed, running forward to hug her son, she pressed kisses all over his face and said. “My love, how are you? Are you okay? What are you doing out here?”_

_“I was waiting for you.” Axel replied looking up at her through his curls._

_“Waiting for me?” Ágata asked._

_“Yes, you said you’d come and get me, but you never did.” Her son said._

_Something in her broke then, hearing how sad he sounded, how betrayed he sounded, Ágata didn’t know what to say, she just stared at her son, wondering how she could explain it to him. Axel didn’t wait for her to reply though, instead, he kept talking. “You said you’d come and get me when you were done with the heist, but you never did. I waited and waited, and you didn’t come. Why didn’t you come, Mama? Do you not love me anymore?”_

_“No!” Ágata exclaimed. “Of course I love you! I love you so much it hurts.”_

_“So, why didn’t you come and get me after the heist? I waited and waited, but you never came.”_

_“I….” Ágata hesitated, she didn’t know how to explain to her son that she thought he’d be better off with his foster parents because of how much of a mess she was, she loved her son like nothing else in this world, but she was still a mess. She hadn’t sorted her life out and she didn’t want to bring her son into that mess._

_“You don’t love me, anymore do you?” Her son asked. “You think I’m a burden, a liability, something to be thought of only in the abstract. Something to use to batter other people into submission, like you did Tokyo?”_

_“No!” Ágata replied. “That’s not true. That’s not true at all.”_

_“Then why didn’t you come for me? Why did you go to Argentina with Helsinki?” Her son asked. “Why didn’t you come find me?”_

_“Because I thought you’d be better off with your foster parents.” Ágata eventually said. “I didn’t think it would be right for me to take you from everything you knew to be with a woman you didn’t remember.”_

_“But you’re my mama, how could I not remember you?” Her son asked._

_“I…I don’t know.” Ágata replied._

_“Of course you don’t, and until you do, you can’t have me.” Her son said._

_Ágata watched as her son turned around and started walking away, she wanted to call out after him, but something was stopping her. She felt herself being pulled away from this place and dragged somewhere else. She could see a light and someone bearded face, and she tried to resist, but the pull was too strong._

Ágata shot up then, gasping for air. She blinked and looked around trying to place where she was, she felt a hand on her shoulder and wheeled to her right, she blinked and then sighed. “Bogota.” She said.

“Welcome back to the world of the living.” The bearded giant said.

“What happened?” She asked. “The last I remember is looking out of the window and seeing my son.”

“You were shot.” Bogota said. “They used your son as a trap.”

“I was shot?” Ágata replied, she looked down and saw bandages wrapped around her.

“Yes, Tokyo got the bullet out and Matilda here has helped keep you alive.” Bogota said gesturing to a woman to her left.

Ágata turned to her left and saw a middle-aged woman with greying hair smile at her. “It is good to see you awake, Ms Nairobi.”

Matilda was one of the Professor’s contacts, placed inside the Bank of Spain for an emergency just like this, Ágata knew, they’d not expected her to be used, that she had been was slightly concerning, but she was just thankful the woman had been here. “Thank you, Matilda.” Ágata said then. The other woman said nothing merely smiled and walked away.

“What else has been happening?” She asked then turning to her right to look at Bogota.

“Denver and Stockholm have been overseeing the melting of the gold.” Bogota said. Ágata raised an eyebrow at that, she remembered how cold Stockholm had been toward Denver-rightly so in her opinion-and wondered if that had been the right choice by Palermo, they needed an efficient team down there, not two people who barely spoke with one another.

Bogota laughed. “Don’t worry they’re talking to one another now.”

“They are?” Ágata asked.

“Yes, Denver apologised.” Bogota said.

“Good.” Ágata replied, he’d been acting like such a prick about Stockholm joining them in this heist.

“Rio and Tokyo have been watching the hostages, with Helsinki alternating with Rio so that he doesn’t get too caught up in it.” Bogota said.

“How is he doing? Rio, I mean.” Ágata asked, she had guessed that the kid would’ve been traumatised by his experience in prison, wherever that had been, he’d broken up with Tokyo, so they’d fucked with him in there.

“Better. I think.” Bogota said.

“You think, or you know?” Ágata asked.

“I think. It’s not like the kid tells me how he’s doing.” Bogota replied.

“And what about Palermo?” Ágata asked. “He’s the only one you’ve not talked about.”

“Ah…” Bogota said, trailing off. “Palermo, Palermo is…”

“What?” Ágata asked, her heart quickening, what had that idiot done?”

“He’s currently tied to a chair in a room adjacent to this one.” Bogota said.

“What?!” Ágata exclaimed. “Why?”

“He tried to leave the Bank, he got changed and took a suitcase out and everything. Tokyo stopped him from leaving, and decided she was the new leader of the plan.” Bogota said matter of factly.

“Why did he decide to try and leave?” Ágata asked. Something about this didn’t make sense. Why would Palermo leave? He’d worked on this plan as long as the Professor had, longer even. He wouldn’t just up stick and go.

“I’m not sure. But Tokyo and The Professor both agreed that he had to be kept contained.” Bogota said.

Ágata was about say something in response to that when a radio went off. “Bogota, do you copy?”

Bogota moved to the radio, picked up the mic and said. “I copy, Tokyo.”

“Report.” Came the response.

“Nairobi’s awake.” Bogota said.

“She is?” Tokyo asked, and Ágata smiled, it would be good to see her friend again.

“She is.” Bogota confirmed.

There was a moment of silence and then. “I’m coming up.”

A few moments passed, then the door was flung open, and Ágata smiled as Tokyo strode into the room. “So, sleeping beauty finally decided to join us?”

“A sight for sore eyes.” Ágata replied smiling.

Tokyo laughed and walked up to her and whispered. “I missed you.”

Ágata took Tokyo’s right hand in her hands and kissed it and whispered back. “And I, you.”


	8. Denver

**Chapter 8: Denver**

Daniel’s heart still hammered whenever he thought for too long about what they were doing. In the previous heist, he’d not been so concerned about whether he got out or not, his father had been with him and they’d had a goal, but now? Now it was different. He had a son to worry about, he had Monica to worry about. He needed to live, they both did, and they needed to get out of here alive and in one piece. That made him worry more, because of what had happened with Nairobi. The cop who was controlling negotiations outside was different to Lisbon, she was ruthless, he got the impression she wouldn’t hesitate to hunt down Cinci and kill him if she thought it would sow division. Thankfully, Cinci was being kept safe in the monastery, with thirteen members of an elite security force guarding him. How the Professor had managed that, Daniel didn’t know.

“Denver?” Daniel blinked and turned to his left to see Monica looking at him with concern. “Are you okay?”

“Yes.” Daniel said. “I was just thinking.”

Monica took his hand then. “We’re going to be fine, Denver, I promise you. We’re going to be fine and in a few days, we’re going to be out of here and back with Cinci.”

“I know.” Daniel replied, raising Monica’s hand to his lips and kissing it. With her hand, still near his lips he asked. “How much have we melted?”

“We’ve just crossed 100 tonnes of gold.” Monica replied.

“100 tonnes, we’ve got another 100 to go, and the truce ends in…” Daniel said looking up at the clock. “Six hours. We need to get moving.”

Monica pulled her hand back and said. “I know, but we’re going as fast as we can. Look around you, Denver.” Daniel did as he was asked, and he saw the workers sweating, some of them were panting, two of them were staring at the forge as if hoping that by doing so they could make the process go quicker.

“We’re all going as quick as we can.” Monica said. “We just need to be patient.”

Daniel sighed. “You’re right.”

Their radio buzzed, Monica picked it up. “This is Stockholm.”

“Stockholm, this is Tokyo, we need you and Denver to come up to the governor’s room.” Tokyo said, the line dying then.

Daniel looked at Monica who shrugged, she handed him the radio, which he put in his pocket. As they made their way to the lift, he turned and said to the room at large. “Keep going, we’re nearly there.” Then the lift opened, he and Monica got in, the door closed and the lift went up.

As they waited for the lift to get to the governor’s floor, a thought crossed Daniel’s mind. “What did Arturo actually say to you, when you were talking to him?”

“Denver…” Monica said.

“I just want to know, because now we’re both much calmer and I just want to know so I know to prepare myself for the next time he tries to get inside my head.” Daniel said.

Monica sighed. “He just said that he was still turned on by me, and he wanted to meet our son. When I refused him that, he threatened to kill me there and then, and he also tried to get his penis out. I shot him in the leg to stop him.”

Daniel closed his eyes, trying not to let the anger take over him. He opened them to see Monica looking at him. “I…I’m so sorry you had to go through that alone.” He took her hand and kissed it.

“It’s fine.” Monica said. “I’m just angry that I ever thought he loved me.”

Daniel shifted, keeping his eyes on her, they’d never really spoken about Arturo or what Monica and he had been like together. If he were being honest, Daniel had never felt comfortable bringing it up, he thought it just be another reminder that Monica was way out of his league, and well, she’d never mentioned it either. He didn’t know what to say, so he kept quiet.

“I guess that’s what happens when you’re so starved for affection that you think the idiot manager showing you any bit of attention is love.” Monica said. Daniel was about to respond when the lift door binged and opened. Daniel led Monica out of the lift and onto the first floor where the governor’s room was. They turned left, then took a right, and found the door open. Daniel walked in with Monica and then gasped.

“You’re awake!” He exclaimed upon seeing Nairobi sitting up and looking at him.

“I am.” Nairobi replied.

Daniel looked at Monica, who smiled and together they walked over to her and hugged her. “How are you feeling?” Daniel asked.

“Surprisingly good, considering.” Nairobi said.

Daniel pulled back, allowing Monica to hug Nairobi, who then said. “I see the two of you are talking to one another again.”

“Yes, I apologised.” Daniel said.

“Good.” Nairobi said. She looked at Monica then and said. “I told you he’d come around eventually.”

Monica laughed. “You did.”

There was a brief pause then, which allowed Daniel to look around the room, he saw Bogota and Helsinki standing in the corner of the room, with Tokyo to the left of Nairobi near the radio, Palermo was nowhere to be seen, nor was Rio. “Where’s Rio?” He asked then.

“He’s guarding the prisoners.” Tokyo said.

“Is that the right thing to do?” Daniel asked. “You know given his….” he trailed off then not really sure how to describe it.

“Yes.” Tokyo said. “Palermo’s been kept to one side, and Rio seems a lot better now.”

Daniel looked at Monica who was looking at Tokyo as if the woman had grown a second head, Tokyo didn’t seem to notice it though for she then asked. “How much gold has been melted and changed?”

“100 tonnes.” Daniel said, looking back at her.

“We’ve got six hours until the truce is over.” Tokyo said.

“I know.” Daniel replied.

“I can go down.” Nairobi said. Daniel turned to look at her and was about to say she shouldn’t when she continued. “I can go down in that wheelchair thing Bogota found,” she gestured to something to her right, Daniel turned and saw the thing she was on about, it looked like a zoomer frame. “And if Bogota comes down with me, then it’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?” Daniel asked. “I don’t mind staying down there to get it done. You need to rest.”

“I’ve had enough rest to last a life time, we need to get everything ready for when the truce ends. You’ll be better placed to help guard the hostages.” Nairobi said.

Daniel looked at Monica who nodded and whispered. “I think Nairobi is right.”

“Then it’s settled, Nairobi will go down to the melting room with Bogota, Helsinki, you will watch Palermo, Stockholm and Denver you will come down with me to watch the hostages.” Tokyo said then.

As they were all getting ready to take on their new roles, the radio crackled. “Tokyo….” It was Rio and he sounded terrified. “Tokyo…I…” there was a gunshot and then a thump.

“Rio?” Tokyo said, holding the microphone tightly. “Rio, come in?” Nothing happened, then a voice came over the radio.

“I told you I’d come for you all.” That was that fuckwit Gandía’s voice. There was a bang on the other end of the line then it went dead.

Daniel stared at Tokyo who looked as if her whole world was crashing down, could it have happened? Could Gandía have actually killed Rio? He didn’t know, but what he did know was that that man was a dead man walking now.


	9. Tokyo II

** Chapter 9: Tokyo II **

****

_When I heard the sound of gunshots over the radio, I panicked. Had Gandía killed Rio as part of his plan to get revenge on all of us? Had Rio managed to wound Gandía? What was going on? I needed to know. I wanted to go charging down the steps to find out, but I was the leader of the group now, I couldn’t do that. So, instead I took a deep breath and looked at the others, and remembered what the Professor had told us in that room in Italy._

“Stockholm, Denver, with me. Helsinki, Bogota keep an eye on Nairobi.” Silene said. She stormed out of the governor’s room and walked down the hallway, passed the elevator and then charged down the stairs, taking them two at a time. Denver and Stockholm were on her heels.

The moment she got to the last step, she breathed a sigh of relief. Rio was stood up right, though he had a bit of a bruised eye. She walked down and stopped before him, she wanted to hug him, but they weren’t together anymore… “What happened?” She asked.

Rio looked down at the ground as he replied. “Arturo was causing a scene, he was trying to get Miguel to do something and Miguel refused, so I went to see what the fuss was about. When I turned around Gandía had broken out of his lock and was standing there.” Rio pointed to a point just to the left of the stairs. “I moved towards him, I raised my gun, but I couldn’t shoot him. Something in me wouldn’t let me shoot him.” Rio looked up at her then and her heart broke, he looked distraught and terrified.

“We heard gunshots, what was that?” Silene asked, trying to keep him focused.

Rio swallowed. “I moved toward him and tried to force him back to where he’d been kept hostage, like an idiot I kept my gun on me and he struggled for the gun, it went off. He forced me down and then disappeared.”

“You still have your gun?” Silene asked.

“Yes.” Rio pointed to a point just out of sight. “I kept it there.”

“Good, go and pick it up.” Silene said.

She took a deep breath, Gandía had escaped. He’d clearly picked up that Rio was the weakest link in their team, and with Palermo in chains and Nairobi injured, he’d decided to make a break for it. She hadn’t wanted to name Rio as the man to look over the hostages, she’d known he wouldn’t be up for it, but the Professor had insisted. He’d said that for Plan Ares to work, Rio had to be the guard. Now, the plan was entering its second phase, and she just hoped it didn’t go wrong.

Rio returned with the gun, his hands shaking. “Stockholm, you and Rio are going to watch the hostages.”

“Tokyo, I can do it.” Denver said. “Rio should get some rest.”

Silene turned around to look at Denver, she knew he was just trying to protect Rio, and she appreciated that, but right now they needed to keep the appearance of weakness to lure Gandía out, and Stockholm and Rio were the best way to do that. “No, you’re coming with me.” With that she walked passed him and got back onto the stairs. A few moments later, she heard heavy footfalls behind her, which told her Denver was behind her.

They got back onto the first floor and she walked passed the governor’s room to where Palermo was being held. She took the key out of one of the jumpsuit pockets and undid his chains.

“What are you doing?” Denver asked.

“Freeing him.” Silene said.

“I can see that, but why?” Denver asked.

Silene stopped what she was doing and turned around to look at Denver. “Gandía is on the loose, the only other person who knows this place as well as he does is Palermo. He might be a sick fuck, but he’s our sick fuck and we need him.” With that she turned back around and undid the last of Palermo’s chains, she then smacked him to wake him up.

Palermo blinked, yawned and then asked. “Has he escaped?”

“Yes.” Silene said.

“Right then.” Palermo got up and walked passed her to the governor’s room, Denver followed him and Silene brought up the rear. She got there just in time to see Palermo pick up the microphone.

“Professor.”

“Palermo.”

“He’s escaped.”

“Initiate Phase 2. He’s going to try and cut the power in the Bank to try and prevent me from looking in on what’s happening. The power grid is located right at the bottom of the bank; take the steps all the way down and then turn right.” The Professor said.

“Copy that.”

“I’ll keep looking for their panic room.”

“Copy.”

The line went dead. Palermo looked at her then, his eyebrow raised in question. “Bogota and Helsinki remain here, the three of us will go down to look for him.”

“Okay.”

Silene walked out of the room, got onto the steps and then charged down. She walked passed the hostages, then turned and got onto the next flight of steps and ran down them. Then the next flight and then finally she got to the lowest floor there was. This place looked like a ghost town, clearly nobody had been here for years. As she waited for Palermo and Denver, she spotted a small room to her right, with a sign that read ‘No Entry’ she moved toward it and tried to open the door, but it was locked.

“He won’t be in there.” Palermo said, appearing at her side.

“What do you think is in there?” Silene asked.

“Whatever shit these people don’t actually want us to find.” Palermo replied.

“Right.” Silene said, the Bank housed all sorts of dirt. She turned around and faced the hallway, she took the first step and then another and then another, then she was walking into it properly, her gun raised.

There was no sound but the sound of their boots on the floor, it was eerily quiet and she didn’t like it. She saw the cables a few metres in front of her, and sped up. When she got to them she pressed on the radio and said. “The wires are fine.”

“Okay, keep one person there and send the other two to look for him.”

“Copy that.” Silene replied, she looked at Palermo and Denver and said. “You two go and look for him, I’ll stay here.”

Both men nodded and walked passed her, disappearing after a few metres. Silene stayed where she was wondering whether she should talk to Rio when this was all over. She didn’t know if he was being serious about them being over or not. If he was, then she’d respect his decision, but if he had said it because of shock or anger at her, well then perhaps they could talk it over? After all, Stockholm and Denver had talked it over and they seemed okay.

Still, something about Rio didn’t seem right. Obviously, he was still in shock and traumatised, she got that, but there was something else. Something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. Of course, that could just be the guilt talking. The guilt that she’d been such an idiot and had had to go and get drunk and do drugs and do all sorts of stupid things because she couldn’t just stay in one place for long enough.

Rio was too good for her, he was kind and sweet, and she was…she wasn’t. Perhaps it would be for the best if their relationship ended and they went their separate ways when this was all over.

She heard something, a clattering and she immediately perked up. “Guys?” She called out.

She heard laughter, heard a whoosh and then heard gun shots. The radio crackled. “Tokyo, get out, get out!”

“What’s going on?” She yelled.

“FIRE!”


	10. Palermo II

**Chapter 10: Palermo II**

Palermo walked passed Tokyo and down the hallway, Denver at his heels. The plan was going as he and The Professor had hoped it would. Gandía had sensed that Rio was the weak link and he’d decided to exploit that. Now he was on the loose and would no doubt try and get to the panic room, to contact the outside. If things went according to plan, The Professor could leak evidence that suggested Gandía had gotten his position in the Bank as part of a payoff to keep him from talking about the shady shit he’d done in Afghanistan. The Professor thought he didn’t know, but Palermo knew, he always knew.

The sound of footsteps nearby caused him to hold up his hand signalling that they should stop. A moment passed, then another, then the footsteps got louder and closer. “Prepare.” He whispered to Denver. He slowly raised his gun, but instead of hearing more footsteps he heard someone laugh and then heard a whoosh of air. “What was that?” He asked aloud.

A smell hit his nose then. He turned to Denver and asked. “Do you smell that?”

“Yes, it’s like the smell a car makes when you keep it in the wrong gear for too long.” Denver said.

There was another whoosh of air which forced Palermo to turn around and he swore as he saw what was coming toward them. Orange flames. “Fuck, he’s found a match somehow. We need to put it out.”

“I think I saw some fire extinguishers back the way we came.” Denver said.

“Right, we need to go and get them.” Palermo said.

Denver turned around and ran back the way they came, Palermo following him. As he ran he pressed a finger to the comms and said. “Tokyo, you need to get out of here. The idiot’s set a fire.”

He didn’t hear any response, and swore. Clearly something had happened to prevent the signal from going through. They kept running, the increase in heat suggesting that the flames were getting closer to them. “Fuck!” He swore.

As they passed an old painting of General Franco that had been torn and written on, he heard something on the comms, it sounded like Tokyo. He put his finger to the comms. “Tokyo, get out, get out now!”

Just as he said that, a bullet whizzed past him and Denver. “Fuck!” Denver swore.

“Keep running.” Palermo commanded. He turned around and fired off one shot before turning around and running. Tokyo’s voice came over the radio.

“What’s going on?”

“FIRE!” He yelled back. “Get out now.”

He hoped the woman would follow his request, it was fine for him to die, but she and Denver had to live, they were both young and in love with others. He wasn’t in love with anyone, Nairobi had been right, he didn’t have the guts to love. Not since Andres…

Eventually they got to the end of the hallway, to where Tokyo had been standing, thankfully the woman was gone. “Here.” Denver said, pointing to two fire extinguishers which had been hidden away next to the power board. Palermo swung his gun around so it was on his back, and grabbed the extinguisher closest to him. Denver grabbed the other one. They looked at one another, nodded, then ran back toward the fire.

When they got halfway down the hallway, they stopped. The fire was a thin trail, almost as if it had been lit on a line. Denver came to stand next to him. “On the count of three.” Palermo said, fighting to keep himself calm, he hated fire.

“Uno.”

“Dos.”

“Tres.”

They both opened the nozzles on their extinguishers and let loose. Jets hit the fire at once, and though the fire momentarily thought them, it eventually sizzled out. “We need to keep going.” Palermo shouted over the noise.

“Okay.” Denver yelled back.

They did so, walking forwards, spraying the jets of safety as they went, slowly but surely the fire started to die down, when they got to its end, it had withered away completely. Palermo blinked switched off his extinguisher and looked down.

Lying on the ground was a match box. _La Chacal._ It read. Palermo whistled. “Son of a bitch had matches in his pocket.”

“How did we not find it?” Denver asked. “We frisked him.”

Palermo pointed to the box and said. “We would have thought he was a smoker. We’re Spanish it’s a crime to take someone’s match box away from him.”

“Fuck.” Denver swore.

“No point swearing now, we need to take the box and go. He’s gone.” Palermo said, picking up the match box with his free hand and putting it inside the jumpsuit pocket. That done he looked at Denver and said. “Let’s leave these fucking things here, we’re going to need our guns soon enough.” Denver nodded, they left the extinguishers by the side and ran back down the hallway. When they got to the power board, Palermo radioed Tokyo and said. “The fire’s out. Gandía escaped, we’re coming to you.”

“Okay.” Tokyo replied.

Palermo strode out toward the steps, and then ran up them as quickly as he could. Denver on his heels. They got to the ground floor, where the hostages were being kept. Palermo sensed that Denver wanted to speak with Stockholm so he whispered. “You stay here, I’ll go talk with Tokyo.” He didn’t wait for the other man to respond, instead he ran up the rest of the steps, stopping when he got to the governor’s room.

“What happened?” Tokyo asked him the moment he got inside.

“We were about halfway down the hallway when I smelt something. Turns out that cunt had lit a fire and was trying to burn us out.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the match box. “He used these.”

“Shit.” Tokyo said as she took them from him. “How did we not see these when we frisked him?”

“He’s a soldier, he would have known how to keep them hidden.” Palermo replied.

“So, he’s definitely gone?” Tokyo asked.

“Yes.” Palermo said. “We couldn’t see him once we cleaned out the fire.”

“Where’s Denver?” Tokyo asked then.

“He’s on the ground floor with Stockholm and Rio.” Palermo said.

“Right.” Tokyo replied, something about her tone made Palermo raise an eyebrow, though he didn’t say anything then.

“We should let the Professor know.” Palermo said then. “See if he’s made any progress with finding the panic room.”

“Right.” Tokyo said, she moved to the comms device, picked up the microphone and said. “Professor.”

“Tokyo.” Came the Professor’s voice.

“He escaped.” Tokyo said.

“But the power board is still secure?” The Professor asked.

“Yes.” Tokyo said.

“Good. He won’t be going there again. He’ll know you’re going to have people watching it now.” The Professor said.

“So, what do we do?” Tokyo asked.

“Now we wait.” The Professor said. “You have six hours left of the truce before the police send in their big guns.”

“Right.” Tokyo replied.

“We need to deal with someone first.” Palermo said then, Tokyo looked at him, and he gestured for her to elaborate.

“Arturo Roman.” Tokyo said.

“What did he do?” The Professor asked, sounding exasperated.

“He distracted Rio,” Tokyo said. “he was causing a ruckus so Rio went to sort him out, when he got to him Arturo stopped, Rio turned around and Gandía escaped.”

“Question him.” The Professor said.

“You don’t want us to release him, to get him out of our way?” Palermo asked then.

“No.” The Professor replied. “He could give them too much information, question him, and if needs be silence him.”

“Gladly.” Palermo replied.


	11. The Professor II

**Chapter 11: The Professor II**

Sergio looked at the images on the screen in front of him and breathed a sigh of relief. All was quiet, the hostages were getting ready to sleep, Arturo Roman, the troublemaker was being watched by Denver and Stockholm and Manila (though Arturo didn’t know that), and so far the man hadn’t tried anything dodgy with Stockholm, yet. That had been a concern when he’d learned Roman had snuck into the Bank, if he tried something with Stockholm, Sergio was not sure Denver would be able to prevent himself from retaliating. Denver was not violent by nature, but if he felt the people he cared about were under threat, nothing would stop him.

Sergio looked away from the ground floor and turned his attention to the monitor that held the video feed of the forge. Nairobi and Bogota were down there, overseeing the melting. In the hour and half that they’d been down there, roughly 20 tonnes of gold had been melted down and changed into portable equipment. That was good, they had two and a half hours left before the truce ended. He hit a button and the forge was replaced with a video feed of the governor’s room, where Tokyo and Rio were talking. He lowered the volume. He didn’t want to intrude on their conversation, whatever they were talking about, it seemed serious given how much Rio was shifting about.

He quickly hit another button and found himself staring at three separate hallways. On the first floor, he saw the shadows of Stockholm and Denver, on the second he saw Helsinki and on the third, he saw Palermo. Nobody else was there. Sergio frowned. Where was Gandía, had he used a tunnel to sneak into the panic room? If he had, then they’d probably need to burn him out before the truce ended, otherwise it would be a blood bath. He needed to check the plans of the Bank again, see if he could find the location of the panic room. He took off his headphones and made to get up when the phone started ringing.

He took a breath, and on the second ring picked up. “Hello?”

“Professor?” Antoñanzas asked.

“Yes.” Sergio answered.

“I’m calling to let you know that Inspector Sierra claims to have found Inspector Murillo’s mother and daughter.” Antoñanzas said.

Sergio’s heart started hammering then. How was that possible? They’d been very careful not to leave any trace in the Philippines, everything had been paid by cash, and when they called back, they’d always made sure to burn the sim cards and bin the ash, before throwing the ash out. He took a breath and a word that Antoñanzas had said, caught his attention. “You said she claims to have found Lisbon’s mother and daughter?”

“Yes.” The man said.

“Why do you say claims?” Sergio asked.

“Because she did not speak with Colonel Tamayo first, and for something as big as this she would have had to have run it by him.” Antoñanzas said.

“So, you think she is lying to try and get Lisbon to talk?” Sergio asked.

“Yes.” The other man replied.

“Did you manage to give her the message I asked you to?” Sergio asked, he desperately wanted to hold Raquel in his arms, but he knew that he would have to wait until after all of this was done to get that wish.

“I did, Professor, she knows.” The man said.

“Good.” Sergio said. He was about to hang up when the other man spoke.

“Colonel Tamayo got a call from the Bank just now as well.”

Sergio’s heart quickened. “And?”

“Someone called Gandía who claimed he was the Head of Security called to say that he had managed to escape and was in a panic room within the Bank.” The man replied.

 _Gandía got there quickly._ Sergio thought. “You’re sure he said his name was Gandía and that the call came from within the Bank?”

“Yes, positive.” The man said.

“Okay, what else was said between the two of them?” Sergio asked, his heart racing.

“Colonel Tamayo said that he couldn’t send in aid for Gandía until the truce was over, but implied that Gandía was free to operate as he saw fit. Essentially giving him a license to kill all the members of your gang that are inside the bank.” The man replied.

“And you caught all of that?” Sergio asked.

“Yes, I was listening in on the wire.” Antoñanzas said.

For a brief moment, Sergio felt doubt. He wasn’t sure if he should believe the man or not. This could all be some sort of trap meant to get him to lower his defences to enable the police to break the truce anyway. But then he remembered that Antoñanzas’ wife and child were currently being watched by the Serbs with fake bombs installed all over the house, Antoñanzas didn’t know those bombs were fake though, and Sergio didn’t think he was brave enough to try ratting them out because of that. Therefore, he took a deep breath and said. “Okay, thank you.”

“Professor.” The man said before the line went dead.

Sergio took a breath. So, Gandía had beaten him to the panic room, he would need to take a look at the map again to see where it was. The man had clearly used the vents around the Bank to travel, otherwise Sergio would have spotted him on the cameras. That he hadn’t gone back down to the basement to cut the power was smart, he knew that area would be watched and thus he was biding his time.

He picked up the microphone and said. “Tokyo, are you there?”

He looked at the computer and saw Tokyo-was she crying? -pick up the microphone. “Yes, Professor, I’m here.”

“A friend of ours has just told me that Gandía phoned the police.” Sergio said.

Tokyo swore and then asked. “What do you want us to do?”

“Be safe, and keep the patrols going, I’m going to find that panic room. Keep Nairobi safe as well, given what you’ve told me about him, he’ll target her first.” Sergio said, remembering what he’d read in Gandía’s personnel file. “And Tokyo, remember, you’ve got two and half hours until the truce ends.”

“I will remember that.” Tokyo said. The line went dead then.

“Marseille.” Sergio called.

“Professor?” The big man asked, appearing behind him.

Sergio turned around, thankful as always that Andres had introduced him to the man at his wedding all those years ago. “I need you to phone our friends in Palawan. Inspector Sierra may or may not be lying about having found where Lisbon’s mother and daughter are staying, but I don’t want to chance it. Phone our friends and tell them to go and get Lisbon’s mother and daughter and move them to the safe house.”

“Of course.” Marseille replied, he made to move away, but Sergio raised a hand, stopping him.

“And when you’ve done that, I want you to make another phone call.”

“To who?” Marseille asked.

“Barcelona.” Sergio said.

Marseille raised an eyebrow. “You are sure, Professor?”

Sergio nodded. “Yes, it is time.” He just hoped she wouldn’t take badly to the request coming now.


	12. Manila

** Chapter 12: Manila **

Julia looked around the room, everyone was settling in for some rest and for that she was glad. There had been a lot of activity recently, first with fears that the police would try and barge into the Bank, then with Gandía escaping and then with Arturo causing a fuss. Arturo was a pig, she had been able to tell that a mile off, what Stockholm had seen in him she didn’t know. Thankfully he’d been dealt with, being dragged off for questioning by Palermo and Tokyo roughly half an hour ago, he’d not yet returned.

Julia’s eyes landed on Dani and Stockholm, the two of them talking about something in hushed tones. She was happy that they were back on speaking terms, the silence that had been there between them in the monastery had worried her, she knew how much Dani loved Stockholm, and she could understand why he’d been nervous about her joining them in the bank. The way he’d gone about explaining his worries though had been stupid, as was typical of him. Julia rolled her eyes at the memory of the explanation he’d given her, and how she’d slapped him for it. He had a good heart, but sometimes he could be a right idiot.

Still, with them both talking to one another now, at least they had guards who were able to keep an eye on everyone without suffering the consequences. Unlike Rio, the young man had clearly not been in a fit state to watch over anyone let alone Gandía, why Tokyo had allowed him to remain guard she did not know. She didn’t know Tokyo and Rio’s history, but she got the feeling that the woman was punishing him, and that was bad. Tokyo clearly didn’t have good control over her emotions and if she was in charge-something Julia wasn’t sure about now Palermo was back-then they might all be fucked.

Julia’s train of thought was interrupted when she heard someone next to her start whimpering. She turned to her right, saw that the old man was asleep, turned to her left and saw Amanda, the Governor’s secretary, whimpering, her brow furrowed, tears falling down her cheeks. Gently, Julia put a hand on Amanda’s arm and shook her. The other woman shot up.

Julia removed her hand and put it in front of her. “Hey, hey, it’s me, you’re alright.”

Amanda looked around, her eyes wide, her hair a mess and then softly asked. “What’s happening?”

“Nothing, you were whimpering in your sleep, I thought I’d check to see if you were okay.” Julia replied.

She expected Amanda to shrug her off and go back to sleep, but instead the other woman sighed and said. “I’m not, I keep having the same nightmare.”

 _Great, just what we need, another hostage having nightmares._ Julia thought to herself, remembering what Dani had told her about the first heist-why she’d not been included in that one she still didn’t get, but that was neither here nor there-she took a breath and then asked. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Again, she thought Amanda might shake her head, but instead the woman said. “I think I was raped.”

Julia’s eyes widened then, she’d not been expecting that. “When?”

“In the Bank.” Amanda said.

“By who?” Julia asked, none of the other gang members had spoken with Amanda, and the only other person Julia could think of who’d spoken with the woman was that boy Miguel, and one look at him had told Julia that he didn’t have the guts to even ask Amanda out, he definitely wouldn’t cross a line.

“Mr Roman.” Amanda said, her voice soft.

 _Of course._ Julia thought to herself, Roman truly was a scumbag. “What happened?” Julia replied, her voice just as soft.

“I was feeling nervous, so Mr Roman took me to one side and gave me some pills, which he said would help calm my anxiety. I ended up feeling really sleepy, so I think I drifted off, but I have memories of him touching me.” Amanda said, she then gestured down to the spot between her legs. “Down there, and I think I remember him doing something with his…” she trailed off then.

“I understand.” Julia said. They couldn’t keep Roman in the bank now, not after this. “Do you want to tell the robbers?”

Amanda immediately shook her head. “I don’t want to cause any trouble.”

Julia stopped herself from sighing, took a deep breath then replied. “You wouldn’t be causing any trouble. Mr Roman violated you, you are entitled to getting justice for that. If you tell the robbers they’ll be able to help you get justice.”

“How?” Amanda asked.

“They’ll let the police know and kick him out, enabling the police to deal with him.” Julia said, if Dani gave the man a bit of beating first, well she didn’t think anyone would complain about that.

“You’re sure?” Amanda asked. “I don’t want to cause a scene.”

Julia took Amanda’s hand in hers then and said. “Amanda, you won’t be causing a scene, you’ll be removing a dangerous man from the Bank and ensuring he faces justice. I promise you, nothing bad will happen.”

Julia saw Amanda struggle over the decision, her brow furrowing, then unfurrowing and then saw her jaw set, she saw Amanda take a deep breath, then heard her reply. “Alright, I’ll do it.”

Julia nodded, she looked away from Amanda, and looked forward to where Denver was standing, she waved a hand and called out. “Excuse me?”

Denver looked up at her and walked toward her. “What is it?” He asked.

Julia looked Amanda then and said. “Tell him what you told me, Amanda.”

She saw Amanda swallow and then say. “I think I was raped by Mr Roman.”

Julia looked at Dani and saw his face shift between anger, fear and then sadness. His voice was soft when he asked. “How did it happen?”

Julia looked at Amanda and gave her hand an encouraging squeeze. “He took me to one side when I said I was having a nervous spell, he gave me some pills that made me feel sleepy and then as I faded in and out of consciousness, I felt his hands stray down.” She gestured with her free hand to her vagina.

Julia looked at Dani then and saw his face go through a storm of emotions before he eventually said. “Okay. Would you be willing to come with me?”

“What for?” Amanda asked sounding scared.

“I…I need you to tell my boss what you just told me, then we’ll deal with Roman.” Dani said.

Julia looked at Amanda and whispered. “Go with him, I promise you, you’ll be okay.”

Slowly Amanda got up, letting go of Julia’s hand and then said. “Okay.” As they walked away from her, Julia saw Dani look at her, and she nodded back at him. Hopefully this would remove Roman for good.


	13. Denver II

**Chapter 13: Denver II**

Daniel walked forwards past the other hostages, Monica to his left, and the woman, Amanda behind him. He looked around briefly, and saw Julia nod at him, he nodded back at her then faced forward. They walked up the steps and as they did so, Daniel thought about what they’d been told. He had no doubt in his mind that Arturo had done something stupid and heinous. The man was a literal scumbag. What he’d tried to do to Monica still played out in Daniel’s mind and made him irrationally angry. He was thankful they’d kept the man somewhere else, otherwise, Daniel wasn’t sure he’d be able to restrain himself from hurting the man.

They got to the top of the steps, Daniel kept going, Monica following him accompanied by Amanda. Daniel kept inhaling and exhaling, like Monica had taught him when they’d been in Thailand. He didn’t want to scare the woman behind him, and he didn’t want to turn around and find Arturo and beat him to within an inch of his life, so he followed these breathing exercises to keep calm.

Eventually they got to the governor’s room, and as he walked in Tokyo and Rio fell quiet, Tokyo looked as though she’d been crying.

“What’s wrong?” Tokyo asked, her voice steady, despite her appearance.

“This lady,” Daniel said shifting to one side so that Tokyo could see Amanda. “has something she wants to tell you, Tokyo.”

“Okay?” Tokyo replied, an eyebrow raised.

Amanda stepped forward and said. “I think I was raped by Arturo Roman.”

Daniel saw Tokyo’s eyes widen before she asked. “How did it happen?”

Amanda then recited what she’d told him and Monica as well as Julia. He kept his attention on Tokyo, her eyes widened as the tale was told, and when Amanda finished, Daniel could tell that he was not alone in wanting to hurt Arturo. Tokyo looked at him and then at Amanda and said. “Thank you for telling us this….” there was a brief pause and then Tokyo said. “Stockholm, please take Ms Amanda to the break room.”

“Of course.” Monica said, Daniel turned around and saw Monica leading the other woman away. Once she was gone, Daniel turned around and saw Tokyo looking at him.

“Go and get Arturo.”

Daniel nodded, turned around and walked out of the room, took a right turning and then opened the door. Roman stared back at him, a cut above his right eye where he’d no doubt been hit by Palermo. “What do you want?” The man sneered.

Daniel walked to him, and lifted the man up and dragged him out of the room, Roman struggled briefly before stopping. Daniel threw him into the governor’s room. He remained by the doorway, not wanting to be anywhere near Roman.

“What do you want, bitch?” Arturo snarled at Tokyo.

To her credit, Tokyo was remarkably calm, her voice was level and her expression gave nothing away. “I’ve just been told something rather interesting about you.” She said to Roman.

“Like what?” Roman replied.

“Like the fact you took advantage of a woman who was scared of the situation she was in.” Tokyo said.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Roman said.

“Amanda.” Daniel snapped. Roman turned and looked at him, and for a moment fear passed over his face before he returned to his arrogant expression.

“Who?” Roman asked.

“Amanda, the governor’s secretary.” Tokyo said forcing Roman to turn back to face her. “Short, with curly hair, glasses.”

“Ah.” Roman said. “She’s lying.”

“Is she now?” Tokyo asked.

“Yes. She was feeling nervous so I gave her some pills to help calm her down. I didn’t do anything to her.” Roman replied.

“What pills did you give her?” Tokyo asked.

Roman sighed. “They’re in my pocket.”

“Denver.” Tokyo commanded.

Daniel walked to the man and reached into his right pocket, found nothing, then reached into the other pocket, felt something and pulled the thing out. It was an orange tube, he read the words on the label and gasped. “You gave her these?”

Roman nodded. “Yes, they help with anxiety.”

“How many did you give her?” Daniel asked, remembering how much pain and agony these pills had caused his ex.

“Two.” Roman said.

Daniel used the tube to hit Roman on the head. “Idiot, you’re supposed to have one if you’re a woman.”

“Why?” Tokyo asked.

“Because the strength of the pill is such that one will leave you feeling sleepy, two will knock you on your arse and free to exploit.” Daniel said. Tokyo didn’t ask how he knew that, for which he was grateful, he had too many painful memories of having to come pick up his ex after she’d indulged in three or four of these things.

“Did you know about that?” Tokyo asked Roman.

“No.” Roman said, though the way he said it made Daniel say.

“He’s lying.”

Roman wheeled around and glared at him. “Why would I be lying?”

“Because you’re a weasel who tries things he shouldn’t. You tried to molest Monica.” Daniel growled.

“She wanted it.” Arturo said. “She wanted it and you know she did.”

Daniel hit Arturo with the tube again and then said. “Keep your mouth shut, cunt.”

Tokyo looked at him and then at Arturo and said. “I find myself agreeing with Denver, Mr Roman. You have a history of doing things which aren’t proper. Therefore, you’re going back to your little room and this time you’re going to be blindfolded.”

Roman wisely didn’t protest, instead he allowed himself to be dragged back to the room and tied up, Daniel took out a blindfold he’d taken from Rio-why the man had that he didn’t know-and tied it around the man’s face. He then walked out of the room and returned back to the governor’s room. Tokyo was stood there staring at the radio when he walked in.

“We have to kick him out.” Daniel said.

“I know.” Tokyo said.

“So, what are we waiting for?” Daniel demanded.

“The Professor, he’s gone out somewhere. We need to tell him what’s happened and then take it from there.” Tokyo said.

“Why?” Daniel asked. “We know he’s guilty.”

“Yes, but he also knows our faces, and he knows the situation in here. You know what he’s like, Denver. If he talks they’ll have something extra to hold over us.” Tokyo said.

Daniel groaned. “Fine, but I don’t want Stockholm watching him.”

Tokyo nodded. “Of course not, I’ll get Helsinki to watch him. You and Stockholm should go back to watch over the hostages, and take Amanda with you.”

Daniel nodded. “Fine.” He walked out of the room his head spinning, he desperately wanted this heist to end so he could get away with Monica and Cinci and they could have a normal life.


	14. Nairobi II

**Chapter 14: Nairobi II**

Ágata grimaced as she felt the bandage press against the wound as she moved. She should have known something like this would happen. The moment she’d seen Axel, she should have known that that bitch of a cop would try something like this. But she hadn’t. Instead she’d been too busy staring at her son, and desperately wanting to hold him, and then she’d been shot. Because of that Ágata was bound to a wheelchair that moved on its own, an invention of the Professor’s for a scenario like this (the man really thought of everything, it was quite scary), and she felt somewhat like a lame duck.

“Boss.” Bogota’s voice brought her out of her thoughts.

Ágata looked up and asked. “What?”

“We’ve got ten more tonnes of gold to melt and shape and then we’re good to go.” Bogota said.

“Ten more tonnes?” Ágata asked.

“Yes.” Bogota replied.

“How much time do we have left?” She asked.

“An hour and a half.” Bogota said. Once again Ágata found herself marvelling at how quickly time had passed. When The Professor had told them that they had 24 hours for a truce, she’d thought it would pass slowly, but it hadn’t. Between hunting for Gandía and melting the gold, time had flown by.

“Excellent. We can get those ten tonnes melted and shaped in roughly an hour.” Ágata said. She just hoped that the Professor had their way out prepared.

“Alright.” Bogota replied, he turned around and bellowed. “Come on lads, we’ve got an hour to get the rest of this done, we can do it.” He was about to walk away when Ágata found herself calling his name.

“Bogota, wait.” The big man stopped, turned around and looked at her.

The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted them. She had told him that she didn’t want anything funny happening, but she couldn’t deny that something about him was attractive. What, she didn’t know, but, she’d called out and he’d stopped.

“Yes, Nairobi?” Bogota asked, eyebrows raised.

Yet again, Ágata didn’t know what prompted the question, but the moment it was out there, she found she didn’t quite regret asking it. “What made you decide to join the heist?”

Bogota’s eyebrows went even higher, if that was possible, then he replied. “Well, we’re melting a shit tonne of gold, turning it into stuff that can either be sold or kept, either way we’re going to be filthy rich. Who doesn’t want to be filthy rich?”

Ágata laughed. “So, that’s why you joined? To be filthy rich?”

“Well, yes, having as many kids as I do means that you kind of need the money.” Bogota replied.

Ágata nodded, she didn’t understand how a man could have so many kids by so many different women and act like Bogota did. It just didn’t make sense. “And, well, I also owe The Professor a debt.”

Now that was interesting, what debt did Bogota owe The Professor. “You knew The Professor before all of this?”

“Well, I met him at Andres’ wedding.” Bogota said. “Then we kept in touch and he helped me out of a few dangerous situations after that.”

“Andres?” Ágata asked, the name seemed familiar but from where she didn’t know.

“You’d know him as Berlin.” Bogota said.

“Ah.” Ágata replied. She got the impression that Bogota wouldn’t go into detail about how The Professor had helped him, so she asked something else. “So, what are you going to do when this is all over?”

“Go somewhere nice, sunny, drink a few beers, and then keep going.” Bogota replied.

“You’re not going to retire? Spend time with your kids?” Ágata asked.

Bogota laughed. “No. That would be a terrible idea. My kids do as well as they do because they don’t need me in their lives so much. I think if I was, it would end very badly. I’m there when they need me, but otherwise, I let them get on with it.”

“So, what do you mean by keep going?” Ágata asked.

“Do everything I did before, just with the knowledge that I’m doing it for me, not for anyone else.” Bogota said.

“Ah, I see.” Ágata said, she could respect that.

“And what about you?” Bogota asked. “What are you going to do?”

“I might go somewhere with Helsi, explore the world, maybe visit my son.” Ágata replied.

“Maybe?” Bogota asked.

“I don’t know if I should or not. I left him in foster care after the first heist, he probably doesn’t even remember me, and going to visit him as a wanted criminal? That would just be a terrible idea.” Ágata said, and as she said it she found that she believed it as well, she didn’t want her son getting involved in this mess.

Bogota didn’t say anything, he just looked at her, and as she looked back she found herself wondering if maybe she should ask to join him when this was all over. She couldn’t explain why she felt like that, but she did, and well, perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad thing. She opened her mouth to say something when the radio crackled.

“Nairobi, Bogota, come in.”

Ágata pressed a finger to the comms button and said. “Nairobi here, what’s going on?”

“We need you to come up to the ground floor.” Tokyo said.

“Alright.” Ágata replied. She looked at Bogota who shrugged. Nairobi turned the wheelchair around and moved to the lift. Bogota pressed the button, the lift pinged, the doors opened and they got in. Bogota pressed the button for the ground floor. The lift then moved up.

When they were perhaps halfway up, the lift started to rock and then it juddered to a halt.

“What’s going on?” Ágata wondered.

Bogota pressed the comms button on his radio and asked. “Tokyo, what’s happening?”

There was silence, then over the comms they heard gunshots and shouting. Ágata looked at Bogota, as she was about to say something, the lift came to life, shooting up, it rocked violently as it did so though, forcing Ágata to hold onto something. The doors opened and she saw Stockholm standing there waiting for them.

Ágata opened her mouth to speak, when something went off, and Stockholm was thrown to the side. “Stockholm!” She screamed. “Bogota check on Stockholm!” She yelled, Bogota did just that and she came up behind him, she looked around but couldn’t see what had caused Stockholm to get thrown. She heard gunshots from close by though and so grabbed her gun and looked around, belatedly realising that the hostages weren’t here. That was odd, where were the hostages?


	15. Rio II

**Chapter 15: Rio II**

Aníbal took a breath, took a drink of water then put the cup down. He looked at the woman in front of him and sighed. “Tokyo….” He began, but before he could finish the woman interrupted him.

“Why did you break up with me?” She demanded.

Aníbal took a deep breath, he’d been expecting this conversation for some time now. Indeed, ever since he’d broken up with her he’d been expecting it. Their arguments before had been about this issue in an indirect manner and when she’d started crying his heart had broken, and now here they were. “I told you why.”

“I think that was the biggest load of bullshit you’ve ever said.” Tokyo said. “So, what was the real reason you broke up with me? Was it because I didn’t answer the call the first time?”

Aníbal shook his head. “No of course not. I’m not a child, Tokyo. I…I just felt that perhaps we were better off by ourselves.”

“Why?” Tokyo demanded. “Do you not love me?”

Aníbal raised an eyebrow. “Of course I love you. Tokyo, I love you so much sometimes it hurts.”

“Then why did you break up with me?” She asked, her voice breaking on the last word.

Aníbal desperately wanted to hold her, to hug her and kiss her and tell her he loved her with everything he had, to show her that it was true, but he’d given up that right when he’d broken up with her, so he remained where he was. “Because you and I are different. You’re a free spirit, you need to be on the move constantly. I know you enjoyed our time on the island, but eventually you got bored. I get it, not everyone is cut out for the island life. I just…I felt like I was chasing after you the whole time, and I don’t want to do that. It’s not good for you, or for me.”

Tokyo moved to stand before him then. She was so close he could smell her perfume. “I can change. I can be mature; I don’t have to go off and be wild. I can change.”

Aníbal sighed. He looked into her eyes and said, “You shouldn’t have to change to be with someone, Tokyo. I love you for who you are. If that’s who you are, then that’s who you are. I would never ask you to change for me.”

“But it’s also the reason you don’t want to be with me.” Tokyo replied, sounding heartbroken.

Aníbal broke his own rule then and took her hand in his and looked at her. “Tokyo, I love you, I always will, but I think we need some space just now, the both of us.” Tokyo didn’t take her hand out of his, instead she just looked at him, a tear falling down her face.

The only thing that interrupted this moment was their radios crackling. They heard a grunt and then a gunshot. Tokyo pulled back and then pressed her hand to the comms. “Palermo, is everything okay?”

Another gunshot. “Palermo?” Tokyo called out.

“We’re going to have to go and see what’s happening.” Tokyo said. Aníbal stood up and followed Tokyo out of the governor’s office. They walked down the stairs and then stopped when they got to the floor where the hostages were. Standing near the elevator was Gandía and in his grip, was Palermo, blood pouring from a wound on his face, a gun pointed to his throat.

“Gandía.” Tokyo said.

“Bitch.” Gandía replied.

“What do you want?” Tokyo asked.

“I want you to summon the mutt up here.” Gandía said.

“Who?” Aníbal asked.

“The mutt.” Gandía said.

“Who?” Aníbal asked again.

“He means Nairobi.” Palermo said.

“Why?” Tokyo demanded.

“Do it, or I will kill your faggot friend here.” Gandía snarled.

Tokyo looked at him and Aníbal nodded. They needed to do it, they had two guns trained on Gandía and Denver and Stockholm were walking to where they were now as well. He heard Tokyo press a button on her comms and say. “Nairobi, Bogota, come in.”

He didn’t hear the response, but he did hear Tokyo tell them to come up. When that was done, Tokyo said. “They’re coming up, so let Palermo go.”

Gandía shook his head. “Not just yet. There’s another thing I need you to do.”

“What?” Aníbal demanded.

Gandía looked at him and sneered. “You’re going to take the hostages to the big meeting room that is to the right of here. You’re going to keep them there until I tell you to let them out.”

Aníbal shared a look with Tokyo. This didn’t seem right, why would he want the hostages moved out, what was he planning?

As if sensing their doubts, Gandía jammed the gun into Palermo’s neck even harder, causing the other man to moan in pain. “Do it, or the faggot gets it.”

Tokyo sighed. “Fine.” She turned to look at Denver and Stockholm who were standing a few feet away from them. “Denver, Stockholm, take the hostages to this room that Gandía has talked about, Denver you’ll stay with them; Stockholm, you’ll come back.”

The two of them nodded, got the hostages to stand up and move. As they moved, Aníbal looked around the floor. He couldn’t see any signs that anything was out of the ordinary, though he did find himself wondering where Helsinki was. The big man had been doing patrols with Palermo, so if Palermo was here, where was he?

As if he could read his mind, Gandía spoke then. “Your bear is knocked out on the lower floor.”

Something about the way the man said that didn’t seem right to him. There was a mixture of both fear and anticipation in his tone that suggested something was about to happen.

“That’s all the hostages put into that room.” Stockholm said. Aníbal turned around at that, and saw that Stockholm looked terrified. He turned back around as Tokyo spoke.

“Okay, you’ve got what you wanted, now let Palermo go.” Tokyo demanded.

“Fine.” Gandía replied, he let go of Palermo and pushed him forward, as he did so, he drew his gun and shot Palermo in the leg, causing the man to cry out. Aníbal drew his gun and prepared to shoot when the lift door binged.

He turned around, saw Nairobi and Bogota start to walk out, and heard someone laugh. He turned around, fired his gun as Gandía ran off, and chased after him, firing as many rounds as he could, before he lost sight of him. He was about to turn around when he saw something drop. He heard it beep and then screamed, “Get down!” But he was too late, the thing went off and he got thrown sideways against a wall.


	16. Raquel II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to @Isaac_McCa11 for beating this!

**Chapter 16: Raquel II**

Something about this didn’t make sense. Raquel looked at the clock on the wall and then counted back the hours that had passed since she’d been captured. 23 hours had gone by, and under law she had to be either let go or taken to court to have a pre-trial hearing if she refused to cooperate after 15 hours. Therefore, if the clock was right, the police had broken the law, and thus they’d have to release her anyway. Yet as she leaned forward and turned her head to the left to peer out of the clear flap, she didn’t see anyone coming to tell her what was going on.

That didn’t make any sense. Tamayo might be a dick, but he was a soldier, and he would know the law. Alicia might be a wild card, but she had never willingly broken Spanish Law in Spain. At least that Raquel knew of; therefore, something was definitely not right. She snapped back when she heard a shout come from outside her little room. Something had happened. Raquel wanted to lean forward and try and catch a glimpse of what everyone was looking at but she knew that would just draw attention and she didn’t want to do that.

She found herself wondering what Sergio was doing. He would have activated Plan Paris the moment he learned that her mother and daughter were being hunted for, but as she’d not been taken to court yet, well, that plan would be failing right about now. And knowing Sergio, he was likely panicking. He did well at almost everything, but she’d come to learn that if he had to adapt to a changed situation he panicked. That had surprised her given how good he was at responding to everything that was thrown at him. Or at least everything he could predict, but this? He couldn’t have predicted this.

The flap opened and Alicia walked in. She put a cup of water on the table before Raquel and sat down. “You must be wondering what’s happening.” Alicia said.

“It’s not every day you hear grown men shout like that.” Raquel replied. “Unless Real Madrid is playing?”

Alicia snorted. “No, nothing like that.”

“Then what?” Raquel asked, trying and failing to sound disinterested.

“There’s been an explosion in the Bank. It caused the glass to almost shatter.” Alicia said.

Raquel leaned forward then, her heart racing. “An explosion?”

“Yes.” Alicia said. “Wait a moment.” The woman got up, walked out of the room, then returned a moment later with an iPad. A video was loaded, and Alicia pressed play when she sat down.

Raquel watched as the camera shook, and as glass rattled, she could quite clearly hear something go off inside the bank. 

The video stopped. Alicia closed the iPad and said. “Your gang members are getting reckless.”

Raquel stared at Alicia and then snorted. “You don’t honestly think that was anyone from my gang, do you?”

“Well who else could it have been?” Alicia asked. “None of the hostages knows how to make a bomb.”

Raquel raised an eyebrow. “So, you’re telling me that a member of my gang let loose a bomb inside the Bank of Spain, for what reason?”

“To create chaos? To try and escape?” Alicia replied.

“And has anyone escaped?” Raquel asked.

Alicia didn’t say anything but she did look mightily uncomfortable, something which made Raquel smile, it also gave her the opening to ask a question. “Why have I not been taken to court?”

“Sorry?” Alicia asked, surprised by the change in topic.

“Under law I’m supposed to be put before a judge for a pre-trial hearing after 15 hours in police custody if I refuse to cooperate.” Raquel answered, she looked at the clock then. “And if that thing is accurate, I’ve been here for almost an entire day. So, what gives? Are you breaking the law?”

Alicia shifted. “No.”

“Then what is it? This isn’t like you, Alicia. You’re not Prieto and you’re not Tamayo, whatever you did in Africa, you’ve usually stuck by the law in Spain, as far as I know. So, what gives?” Raquel asked.

Alicia shifted again and she refused to look at Raquel. “Things have been very busy.”

“How?” Raquel asked. “You’ve had a 24-hour truce put in place with the gang.”

Alicia changed the topic then by looking at her and saying. “The offer still stands you know.”

“What offer?” Raquel asked.

“Give me the Professor and I’ll let you walk out of here.” Alicia said.

“That wasn’t the offer.” Raquel said.

“No?” Alicia replied, her brow furrowed.

“No.” Raquel said. “The offer was that if I gave you the Professor you’d put in a good word with the judge to get my sentence reduced. We both know that won’t happen though, the government won’t want me on the street after four years, and I’ll never sell out The Professor.”

“A shame.” Alicia said. “Because now that Alberto found that sim card, we can still try and find your mother and daughter.”

Raquel snorted, she knew that the cops would never find her mother and daughter, not where Sergio had put them. “You can try.”

Alicia leaned forward. “You’re surprisingly willing to risk your mother and daughter getting captured. Why?”

“You’re surprisingly willing to break the law.” Raquel retorted. “Why haven’t I been taken to court yet?”

“I told you, things have been busy.” Alicia snapped, leaning back against her chair, though now her eyes had moved to the flap.

Raquel leaned forward then to see what Alicia was looking at so intently, when she saw Tamayo speaking to the cop who had let her know Sergio knew she was alive. She leaned back, looked at the clock and did a double take. Only a few moments ago the clock had said it was 15:45, now it was saying it was 07:20, had she been imagining things? She blinked, looked away from the clock and then looked back at it, and it was still saying 07:20, but as she stared at it, she saw it change back to saying 15:45. She frowned and pondered that. Was the clock malfunctioning or?

“What’s the time?” Raquel asked.

“What?” Alicia replied looking away from where Tamayo was.

“What’s the time?” Raquel asked again.

Alicia looked at her watch and said. “15:45, why?”

Raquel shook her head. “No reason.”

Alicia snorted. “Fine, I’ll be back later. Have some water.” The woman got up and walked out, leaving Raquel to stare at the clock. She was sure she’d seen it say 07:20, not 15:45, and if that was the case then something strange was going on. 

She gasped as she realised what it might have been. Operation Chronos. A plan devised by the highest levels of the police to confuse terrorists, distort time and make them panic. Was that what was happening here? She didn’t know, could it be? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, she had no way of knowing, unless…she leaned forward and looked at the cop who’d told her about Sergio and tried to catch his eye, perhaps he could help her.


	17. The Professor III

**Chapter 17: The Professor III**

Sergio watched on the screen as there was an explosion and then everything went blank. For a moment, he worried that he’d lost the connection, but a few seconds later the line came back. There was smoke billowing past the cameras, and he couldn’t see anyone. That just made him more nervous, so he picked up the microphone and said,

“Palermo? Tokyo? Nairobi? Denver? Stockholm? Rio? Bogota? Helsinki? Anyone there?”

Nobody replied. So, he tried again. “Palermo? Tokyo? Are you there? Can you hear me?”

Again, nothing. Panic started to rise inside him. Had he miscalculated? He had thought Gandía would try and physically kill one of the group, he hadn't thought the man would use a grenade to do the deed. That, and him moving the hostages by taking Palermo as his own hostage, he hadn’t foreseen. He kicked himself for that. Gandía was an unstable madman who had served in the army, of course he would do something that dangerous.

Just as he was about to try again on the mic, he heard someone reply. “I can hear you, Professor.”

“Rio?” He asked tentatively.

“Sí Professor, it’s Rio.” The young man replied.

“Are you okay?” Sergio asked. “How is everyone?”

There was a pause, then Rio said, “I’m okay, just a bid winded.” He heard movement then, it sounded as if he were walking through the smoke. Sergio heard coughing, then Rio spoke. “We’re okay, Professor. I’ve got Tokyo here with me.”

Sergio exhaled. “Where’s everyone else?”

“Palermo’s here, he’s a bit out of it.” Rio said. “Nairobi and Bogota were by the elevator when the grenade went off.”

“We’re okay Professor.” Nairobi said then. “I sent Bogota to check on Stockholm.”

“What happened to Stockholm?” Sergio asked.

“She got thrown back by the force of the blast, Professor.” Bogota said then. “She’s unconscious but not hurt.”

“Okay, and Denver?” Sergio asked.

“I’m here, Professor, I’m with Bogota and Stockholm.” Denver said.

“Where’s Gandía, Professor?” Tokyo asked.

Sergio looked at the left-hand monitor and saw Gandía storming into the Governor’s room, he pressed another button and saw him enter the bathroom. “He’s in the governor’s bathroom.”

“What?!” Tokyo exclaimed.

“Wait.” Sergio said, turning back to look at the left-hand monitor. He saw Gandía press a loose tile, and as he watched, the tile swung open and then to the right. Sergio hit a button and zoomed in on the camera. He saw what looked like a pad appear, he pressed another button and the camera really zoomed in this time. He saw Gandía type in a code. He grabbed a pen and paper and wrote down what he saw.

_1065._

The founding of the Kingdom of Castile, a smart pin to use for an entranceway to a secret room. He watched as Gandía stepped in through the gap that had opened and disappeared through it. Sergio punched the air in triumph, sheer luck had ensured that he’d found the secret room, they had him now. He pressed a button on the microphone and said.

“The secret room is in the governor’s bathroom. When you get there, press the third tile to the left from the radiator and then enter 1065 on the pad that comes out.” Sergio said.

“Okay.” Came the response.

“Denver, take Stockholm to the safe room on the ground floor that we identified. Tokyo, wake Palermo up.” Sergio said. He heard slapping, then a grunt, then Palermo’s voice came through the comms.

“What?!”

“Palermo, I need you awake and alert.” Sergio said. “You’re going to hunt down Gandía, and you’re going to bring him out alive.”

“Alive?” Tokyo exclaimed.

“Yes, alive. We need him alive for the next part of the plan to work.” Sergio said.

“Okay.” Came the response.

“Rio, are you okay to record another video?” Sergio asked.

“What about?” Rio asked, sounding hesitant.

“You’re going to need to detail everything that happened to you in Africa, and you’re going to need to be specific. Names, events, everything. Can you do that?”

The smoke was still obscuring his view of the ground floor so he couldn’t tell how Rio had reacted, but he could hear the hesitation in the young man’s voice when he said. “I’ll do it.”

“Okay, great. When you’re done, be sure to send it to me using the governor’s secure line.” Sergio said. He could then pass it onto the guys in Pakistan to spread out to the media. That should distract the police for long enough.

He took a deep breath to try and get his thoughts back, he glanced at the clock to his right and frowned. It was 15:45, and there still hadn’t been any word from those digging into the Court Car Park. They should have grabbed Raquel by now, if what he’d been told was true. Were the police still holding her? Had they figured out what he was trying to do? He didn’t know, and it was making him nervous.

He looked back on screen and sighed as he finally saw Rio and Tokyo, they were whispering something to one another, Palermo was stood to one side, looking at his gun. He pressed a button and saw Denver carrying Stockholm to the safety room, he pressed another button and saw Nairobi and Bogota moving toward Palermo. He frowned. “Where’s Helsinki?” He asked.

Palermo was the one who responded and he sounded pained as he did so. “He was knocked out by that cunt of a soldier. I’ll go and see if he’s okay.”

“Okay, be careful.” With that he let go of the microphone and looked back at the clock.

_15:46._

It had been 23 hours since he’d negotiated the truce with the police, and almost 24 hours since Raquel had been taken by them. If they were following the law-which he highly doubted now-Raquel should have been taken to court to have a pre-trial hearing, where Plan Paris would ensure she could stall for time. But, it seemed there hadn’t been a pre-trial hearing yet, and he’d heard nothing from the diggers in about an hour, so, maybe something had gone wrong.

Maybe the police were keeping Raquel a prisoner because they knew what he was trying to do. How they could know that he didn’t know, as he’d not told anyone other than the diggers and Raquel about Plan Paris, but there was always a chance someone had talked.

Marseille’s footsteps brought him out of his thoughts. What the big man said next confused him though. “I think we’re being lied to.”

Sergio turned around and looked at the man, he had a bit of dirt on his forehead but other than that was pristine as always. “What do you mean?”

Marseille pointed to the clock. “That thing says it’s fourteen minutes to four in the afternoon, but the conditions outside and the clock on the shop’s wall said it was twenty-one past seven in the morning.”

Sergio’s eyes widened. “What?!”

“I know. At first I thought I had misread the thing, but then I asked the shop assistant, who showed me her watch, which was analogue.” Marseille replied. “It said the same thing. Twenty-one past seven in the morning.” Marseille replied.

Sergio turned to look at the clock, the thing was digital and was thus on the government’s control board, meaning that the government could set the time forwards or backwards depending on the position of the sun and thousands of other different things that he didn’t quite understand. Was it possible that the police had manipulated the time to confuse him and to make sure they had the upper hand? If so, how would they have done it?

“You’ve got a digital watch right?” Sergio asked.

“Yes.” Marseille said, he rolled his sleeve down and showed it to Sergio.

“15:46.” Sergio muttered as he looked at it.

“I think they might be using a protocol called Chronos, Professor.” Marseille said.

“Chronos? You mean the God of Time?” Sergio asked.

“Yes, when I was in the army, we had a unit, a secret unit that manipulated time to confuse the enemy, make them rush through their plans to meet deadlines, so that we could catch them unawares. If Tamayo and Inspector Sierra are trying to buy time, they’re probably using that protocol.” Marseille said.

“But how would they get access to it?” Sergio asked. “If the army used it, it’s likely to be classified, no?”

Marseille shook his head. “Not if the army is involved in this heist. They would have put the programme at Tamayo’s disposal, and they’d be using the central networks in Madrid to distort time.”

It clicked then. “Gandía’s trying to force our hand. That’s why Tamayo agreed to let him do what he’s doing.” Sergio said, he wheeled around and picked up the microphone.

“Tokyo, Palermo, don’t go after Gandía.”

“Why?” Came the response.

“It’s a trap, they’re trying to force our hand. Nairobi and Bogota need to go down and finish melting the gold. You’ve got eight hours left, not one. The police lied to us.” Sergio put the microphone down and looked at Marseille. “We’re going to need to have a chat with our police friend.”


	18. Alicia

**Chapter 18: Alicia**

The moment Alicia knew she was clear of the interrogation room, she swore. Tamayo turned to face her, an eyebrow raised. “She knows.”

“What?” Tamayo replied.

“She knows about the clocks.” Alicia said.

Tamayo’s face dropped, he gestured for her to follow him. They walked to a quiet corner of the tent and then he whispered, “How do you know she knows?”

“Just now when I was questioning her, she asked me what the time was.” Alicia said.

“And?” Tamayo asked.

“I changed the topic, but she knows.” Alicia said. “She also asked why she hadn’t been taken to court. I lied, but she knows. The ruse is done.”

“Fuck.” Tamayo said.

“I told you it wouldn’t last forever. We need to send her to court, get her before the judge and get into that bank, before any journalist realises what we’ve done.” Alicia said.

“Are you a hundred percent sure she knows about the time?” Tamayo asked.

“Yes.” Alicia said. “Raquel isn’t an idiot; she would’ve done the maths in her head.” She was just surprised it had taken her this long, but then again, Alicia supposed, she was under a lot of stress.

“Fine.” Tamayo said. He walked past her and barked out an order. “I want transport ready to take Raquel Murillo to court. She leaves in five minutes.”

“Sir!” One of Tamayo’s lackeys said.

Alicia followed Tamayo to stand before the television screens and whispered. “If she knows then you can guarantee the Professor also knows.”

Tamayo sighed. “You think there’s a mole inside?”

Alicia snorted. “I think there’s probably three moles inside, but that’s not what I’m getting at. Raquel would’ve told The Professor about the finer points of Police Law, therefore, it’ll have clicked for him as well that something’s not right. Therefore, we need her to get to court, and whatever shenanigans you cooked up with that former soldier, you need to bring them to their peak now.”

“Right.” Tamayo said. He looked around and then snapped. “You, Sergeant Gonzalez, put me through to the governor’s panic room.”

“Yes, Colonel.” The Sergeant replied.

As they waited for the line to connect, the programme on television changed. It no longer showed the Bank of Spain, instead, it showed a video, and the moment she saw brown curls she knew what this was.

Alicia stood there in silence as Aníbal Cortés looked into the camera and told the world about what had happened to him in Africa. Alicia knew that she’d be made a scapegoat for this. She looked at Tamayo and saw his skin going red, the man was no doubt going to have nightmares and a heart condition when this was all over.

Once the video stopped, Alicia realised the whole tent was silent. They’d all been watching the video. She had to give it to the Professor, he clearly knew how to send them on a wild goose chase. Now that the video was out there, they’d have to spend more time dealing with the press and their wild questions than actually focusing on the heist.

The thing that broke the silence was Sergeant Gonzalez speaking. “There’s been no answer, Colonel.”

“Try again.” Tamayo barked.

“Sir, the Minister for the Interior is on the line.” Another police officer said.

Tamayo muttered a curse under his breath and walked over to pick up the phone. Alicia kept her focus on the television screen in front of her. The news anchors were debating the merits of the footage that had been released and whether or not this changed anything. One of the women brought up a poll that the network had conducted of their viewers that showed 85% of them supported the gang inside the Bank, whilst this support was highest amongst those aged 18-35, with their support standing at 99%. Alicia had to laugh at that, the young were so naïve and foolish. They’d clearly bought into what the Professor had sold them.

“Alicia.” Tamayo’s voice pulled her out of that contemplation, she turned to face him and immediately frowned. He was as pale as a sheet.

“What is it?” She asked.

“The Minister wants you in his office, now.” Tamayo said.

Alicia sighed. “Fine.” She walked passed Tamayo, and out of the tent, glanced briefly at the cordon in front of her, saw the vast number of protestors, laughed, got into her car and drove off. Once she was out of the cordon, she took a deep breath. She would need to make her case to the Minister, remind him that he had sanctioned the torture of Mr Cortés and then take it from there. She would not lie down and allow the State to fuck her.

As she stopped at a traffic light, she turned to her right and saw the grey van that usually carried prisoners to court. She sighed, at least Raquel was inside, that would make things easier. If the woman had figured out that they’d manipulated time, then they were all in for a fun time of it. Alicia looked at the clock on her car’s dashboard, it said 15:50, but in reality, she knew the time was something closer to half past seven in the morning.

Alicia found herself wondering how the Professor was going to play this out. He obviously couldn’t let Raquel get sentenced, the woman might have resisted her questioning in the tent, but when confronted with actual prison time? With that looming in front of her, Alicia suspected she’d rat on the Professor with everything she had. Therefore, the man would need to get her out, presumably before she was taken to court. The how was what she pondered. When the woman known as Tokyo was being driven to prison, he’d had a gang of Serbs come and take her away. He wouldn’t be foolish to use the same statement again, of that she was sure, so how would he do it?

The light turned green and she drove off. Out the corner of her eye she saw the grey van turn right and disappear up the road to the court house. Alicia focused on the road in front of her, her mind whirring. Obviously, there would be no break out, no attempted kidnapping as it were, but there were other ways. The Professor had a thing for tunnels, she’d noticed that when she’d been studying him. He’d dug a fake tunnel in the Mint, then a real tunnel elsewhere, and this time around he’d made it seem as if he’d dug a tunnel again in the Bank, only for that to be a fake.

There was an empty restaurant near the Court House that could be used if one were so inclined, Alicia thought to herself. The perfect place to set up operations and keep an eye on everything whilst also being within the vicinity of Operation Chronos to be time warped. Could he be digging the tunnel from there, like he’d done the last time? But was he really that foolish? Doing such a thing was risky, given that any cop worth their salt would know to expect that now.

She sighed in frustration as the Ministry for the Interior appeared before her. She stated her name, then drove through into the grounds. 


	19. Manila II

**Chapter 19: Manila II**

Julia took a breath, the explosion had rocked the room, but thankfully nothing had fallen down and hit anyone. Dani had looked at her in panic when the thing had stopped, she’d urged him to go out and thankfully he hadn’t needed to be told twice. He was outside now, dealing with whatever had happened. No doubt that idiot Gandía had done something, she was just grateful that Arturo Roman was no longer being kept with them, he was a spark for all sorts of trouble.

Thinking about Arturo made her turn to her right to see how Amanda was doing. The woman had been incredibly brave coming forward to tell the gang about Arturo, and now she seemed to have relaxed a lot more knowing that justice would be done. The woman was staring into space, so Julia left her be. She turned to her left and saw that one of the young men, Miguel, she thought his name was, was looking at something in his pocket. Curious she whispered.

“What are you looking at?”

Miguel immediately snapped to attention and in his panic, something fell out. Julia looked down and saw that it was a phone, she looked at him then and asked. “Where did you get that?”

“Mr Roman gave it to me.” Miguel whispered back.

“To do what?” Julia asked.

“To call the police.” Miguel replied. “He said he had the number that would go right into the control centre outside.”

Julia cursed, of course Roman would have something like this, he’d no doubt hidden it in some place where nobody would think to look when he’d snuck in. And giving it to Miguel was smart, nobody would suspect the nervous young man. She looked at him then and saw that he was sweating profusely, no doubt scared she was going to tell someone about this. Instead she left the phone on the ground and asked. “Have you called anyone?”

Miguel shook his head. “No…I haven’t had the nerve to.”

Julia nodded. “Good, that’s smart, you don’t want to do anything foolish.”

“What should I do about the phone?” Miguel asked.

“Give it to me.” Julia whispered. Miguel leaned down and handed it to her. She put it into one of her pockets and then nodded to him.

At that moment, the door opened and Rio stood there, he looked as white as a sheet. She raised an eyebrow at him, and he spoke. “I am sure you all heard that explosion a few moments ago. Don't worry, nothing is too badly damaged, but for now you are going to have to stay here.”

There were murmurs at that, before Rio added. “When it's safe for you to come out, I will get you.” With that he turned and shut the door behind him.

Julia sat there, listening to the mutterings of her fellow hostages and wondering where things would go from here. So far, nobody had died, as far she was aware, but Gandía had escaped and was no doubt going to start causing chaos. They would need to find him as soon as possible if they were to have a realistic chance of getting out of here alive with all the gold that they could get.

At that point she heard someone speak close to her. “If it’s Gandía they are chasing, they had better catch him soon.”

Julia turned to her right and saw the governor sitting nearby. “What do you mean?” She whispered.

“He’s a mad man.” The Governor said. “He’s good at his job but he’s completely mad.”

“Why did you have him as your head of security then?” Julia asked.

The Governor snorted. “I didn’t choose him, I got a call from the Prime Minister one day telling me that he would be my new Head of Security.”

“They can do that?” Julia asked, surprised.

“Yes.” The Governor answered. “So, I did some research into him, and he’s not pleasant.”

“How so?” Julia asked.

“He served in Afghanistan, and then was used in a special op in Africa, and I think something happened there that broke him. Half his record is sealed off, but what little I was able to see does not suggest a stable individual. The longer he is on the loose the more dangerous it becomes for everyone.” The Governor said.

“Why did you keep him on as your head of security, if you knew this?” Julia asked, wondering how much of a coward the Governor was.

“I didn’t have a choice.” The Governor said. “The moment I tried to get rid of him, I got a call from the Prime Minister and was told in no uncertain terms that he had to stay.”

Julia sighed. “So, clearly he’s valuable.”

“Yes, and I think he’s got something on the Prime Minister. You don’t stay in post with the PM’s backing unless you have something on him.” The Governor said.

“So, what do you think he will do now?” Julia asked.

“He’ll run about the bank, luring the gang members to different parts of it, and then he’ll pick them off one by one.” The Governor said. “And if he hasn’t already, he’ll get in touch with the police, to tell them he’s doing this.”

Julia sighed. “With the truce running out as well, that’s going to mean they’re facing a two-way assault.”

The Governor did something she’d not been expecting then; he laughed. “The truce isn’t going to end anytime soon.”

Julia raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

The man rolled down his sleeve and showed her his watch. It said that the time was half past seven. She didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. How was this possible? She looked at him then and the Governor whispered. “They’ve been manipulating time.”

Just as she was about to say something, the door opened and Dani was there. He looked at her and said. “You, come with me.” Julia got up and walked to Dani, and when they were both outside, he shut the door.

“What’s going on?” Julia demanded.

Dani sighed. “I need you to look after Stockholm.”

Julia raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“I need to go and hunt for Gandía. Professor’s orders.” Dani said.

“Okay, where is she?” Julia asked.

“This way.” Dani said, leading her down a hallway and toward a smaller room. He opened the door and allowed Julia to enter. She stopped when she saw Stockholm lying on the sofa.

She turned around and said, “I’ll stay with her.” Dani nodded his thanks then walked out.


	20. Palermo III

**Chapter 20: Palermo III**

Palermo looked at Helsinki and Denver. Denver looked ready for war, Helsinki sported a large bandage around his face, from where Gandía had hit him. “We’re going to split up. Helsinki, you take the ground floor, Denver you take this floor, I’ll take the bottom floor.”

“Okay.”

“Keep your radio channels free, so we can communicate. And do not fire unless he shoots first.”

“Okay.”

With that Palermo turned and stalked down the steps. He knew Helsinki was behind him, and a part of him wanted to talk to the man, but he ignored that feeling for now. They had work to do. As such, he stepped onto the ground floor, turned and said to the man. “Check in with the hostages first.”

“Okay.”

Palermo nodded, then turned around and kept walking. As he walked toward the next set of steps, he found himself wondering if they should have gone through with Andrés' plan from the start. Gandía had refused to be escorted out with the boxes, so they should have killed him. But the Professor had refused, and so now they were forced to chase him down.

As he got onto the steps that led to the ground floor and the power supplies, he found himself wondering how things would have gone had Andrés been here. He imagined there’d be far more control in the situation. Tokyo would never have dared to stage a coup with Andrés around, and Sergio would never have caved into her demands had his older brother been around. But Andrés was gone, and so, here they were.

He reached the bottom of the stairs and raised his gun. He looked around but saw nothing, so he stepped out onto the floor and hurriedly did a quick search. He could hear the forges working in the distance. How they had managed to design the Bank in such a way that the vaults were underground completely, he did not know, but he was impressed by it. It meant that Nairobi and Bogota were safe, and that's what mattered.

“I’ve seen nothing here.” Helsinki said over the comms.

“Same.” Palermo said, as he glanced around the floor, stopping at the halfway point where there’d been a fire before.

“I think I’ve found something.” Denver said.

“Okay, where are you?” Palermo asked.

“In the governor’s bathroom.” Denver replied.

“Right, stay there.” Palermo said. “Helsinki go up and join him, I’ll come up behind you.”

Palermo turned around and walked back up the steps. He stopped when he came to the ground floor, looking around and seeing the remnants of the explosion. Rio and Tokyo had done a good job cleaning everything up, they were not staying in the safe room with Stockholm, keeping an eye on her, per his orders. He nodded to himself then walked forwards and ran up the next set of steps. He walked down the hallway then turned to enter the governor’s room. He kept going and found Helsinki and Denver staring at an open door.

“How did that come about?” Palermo asked, pointing at it.

“I walked in here, found the tile, the Professor had mentioned, pressed it then entered the code and this happened.” Denver said.

“Very well, let’s go inside.” Palermo said.

He pushed passed the others and walked in. It was pitch black, so he took out a torch light and switched it on, pointing it forwards to guide their way. They took a turn and then kept going straight, then they came before another door, this one had no code. Palermo handed the light to Denver and then pushed the door, it swung open.

He took the light from Denver, and then stepped into the room whistling as he did so. “So, this is how he’s been keeping an eye on us.” Palermo said, shining a light on the computer monitors and security feeds to their right. “Helsinki, switch on the light.” A murmur then the light came on.

Palermo whistled. Not only were there monitors with what looked like a computer nerd’s wet dream, there were also enough guns and grenades here to destroy a small town. “Grab as many of these things as you can. We’re going to strip this place bare.”

Palermo walked to the wall opposite the computers, and picked up two grenades, he pocketed them, then he picked up a handgun and kept hold of it. Denver picked up a handgun, whilst Helsinki picked up a shotgun.

Palermo pressed a button to the radio and said. “Rio, do you copy?”

“I do.” Rio said.

“We need you here. We’ve found the secret room. Come up quickly and quietly.” Palermo ordered.

“Alright.” Rio said before the line went dead.

Palermo stood staring at the armoury. “We’re going to need to dismantle these weapons as well.”

“Why? Do you think he’ll come back?” Denver asked.

“He might.” Palermo said. “He’ll run out of bullets eventually, and he’ll need to come back to get another weapon.”

Silence fell over them then, as they waited for Rio to arrive and Palermo found himself wondering, not for the first time, just what Gandía truly was. The man clearly wasn’t stable, and as such they would need to get rid of him if they were to successfully get out of here. But knowing Sergio, the man wouldn’t want that to happen, he’d want to take the man as a hostage or something noble like that.

“Fucking hell.” Rio remarked, Palermo turned around and saw the young man standing in the doorway staring at everything before him.

“Come here.” Palermo said.

Rio entered the room and then gasped. “Can you disable these computers so that he can’t see anything?”

“Yes. I’ll need time though.” Rio said.

“You’ll have it.” Palermo said. “Helsinki, you stay here with Rio. Denver, you come with me.” Just as he was about to walk to the door, he stopped. “Do you hear that?”

Footsteps echoed in the passageway, and then they stopped as a figure appeared in the doorway. The man grinned. “Well, this is going to be fun.”

Palermo was about to shoot when the man shot first. Palermo ducked and then saw the man run away. “We’re going to need to go after him.”


	21. Stockholm II

**Chapter 21: Stockholm II**

Monica’s stomach hurt. It really, really hurt. She didn’t know if it was because of the explosion from the grenade or what, but her stomach was hurting something fierce and she didn’t want to move. Indeed, she didn’t think she could move from the couch even if she wanted to. She had opened her eyes when Julia had entered the room, and then shut them again after a while, and sleep seemed to have helped calm her down.

Then, when she had woken up again, Julia had left and Tokyo was in the room. Stockholm had drifted in and out of consciousness since then. She didn’t know how much more of this pain she could take without a doctor. The doctor that the Professor had said he was going to send in to help with Nairobi had never arrived, and as such they were all a bit worried about that. The Professor seemed to have forgotten about it, and with everything else going on, nobody seemed to remember it either.

“How are you feeling?” Tokyo asked.

Monica opened her eyes, and looked to her right. Tokyo was sitting on a chair next to her, staring at her in worry. “My stomach feels like it’s on fire.” She said.

“Are there any wounds or gashes on it?” Tokyo asked.

“I don’t know.” Monica replied.

Tokyo nodded, got up, and walked toward her, she then gently lifted her shirt and sighed. The shirt was lowered down and Tokyo said. “There’s nothing visible that I can see. We might need to bring in the doctor if this continues.”

“Okay.” Monica said.

“Have you had any medicine?” Tokyo asked.

“No. It hurt too much before.” Monica said.

“And now?” Tokyo asked.

“I think I could manage.” Monica said.

“Alright, wait here.” Tokyo said. Monica heard her walk away from her for a moment, before returning. Monica looked at her again and saw that she held a packet of tablets and a bottle of water.

“Have one of these and take it with this.” Tokyo said, handing her the packet and the bottle.

Monica duly took the tablet out, put it in her mouth, then opened the bottle and downed it. The tablet tasted bitter, but she started to feel better almost instantly. Tokyo sat back down, and Monica smiled her thanks at the other woman and then tentatively asked her. “How are you?”

Tokyo shifted slightly in her chair and looked as if she were about to lie, but then she said, “Not good.”

“Is it to do with Rio?” Monica asked.

“Partially yes, but also, everything that led us to this moment.” Tokyo replied.

“How so?” Monica asked.

“I met the Professor whilst running away from the cops. They were chasing me because of a robbery my boyfriend and I had taken part in. It was my idea and my boyfriend died because of it. I was running away when the Professor found me and saved me. I think he knew I needed something to do otherwise I’d go mad. Then the heist ended, and Rio and I spent so much lovely time together, but I got impatient and had to go off somewhere, and that more than anything led to us being here.” Tokyo said.

“Rio didn’t have to make that phone call.” Monica pointed out.

“I know, but we’d agreed that we would talk, and I was too busy getting drunk to answer.” Tokyo said, sounding miserable.

“Hey.” Monica said, taking the other woman’s hand in hers. “You can’t go around blaming yourself for this. Rio made a choice and so did you. There are consequences, but we all decided to get involved in freeing him.”

“I know.” Tokyo said softly. “But I can’t help but think that if I had just answered when he’d called we’d still be together.”

Monica squeezed the other woman’s hand. She had no idea of how to reply to this, of how to comfort her friend, for that's what Tokyo was, a friend. She sat in silence with the other woman, just holding her hand and hoping that by doing so, she could offer some form of comfort. She knew that Rio loved Tokyo still, he had said as much to her a few hours ago, but he was trying to be some sort of good guy, when it was clearly hurting him and her.

“You should talk to him.” Monica said then.

Tokyo looked at her. “I tried.”

“And?” Monica asked.

“He wasn’t receptive.” Tokyo replied.

Monica frowned, that didn’t sound right. Rio had sounded as if he was definitely going to talk to Tokyo when they’d spoken last. She opened her mouth to say as much, but then closed it when Tokyo added. “To be fair, we were also trying to decide what to do about Gandía and a bunch of other stuff as well. When this whole thing is over, we’ll talk.”

“So, there’s something there at least?” Monica asked.

“I think so.” Tokyo replied, smiling slightly.

“Good.” Monica said.

“And what about you and Denver? Is everything okay there?” Tokyo asked.

“I think so.” Monica said. “We talked. We sorted out what was bothering us, and we’re okay now, I think.”

“Good.” Tokyo said. “I know how much he loves you.”

Monica smiled. “I know too.”

Before either one of them could say anything else, gunshots rang out from outside. Tokyo got up, and switched on her radio. “What’s going on?”

Monica switched on her radio and listened as the gunshots echoed out of the machine. Slowly but surely, she heard shouting and then Denver came onto the channel. “We’ve found the panic room, Gandía found us. We’re chasing him.”

Another gunshot sounded and then they heard someone swear. “Do you need help?” Tokyo asked.

“No.” Denver said. “We’ve got him pinned.”

“Okay, bring him back alive.” Tokyo said.

“Okay.” Denver said, followed by what sounded like a scream and then, “FUCK!”

“DENVER!” Monica yelled into the radio, but all she heard back was static.

  
  



	22. Lisbon III

**Chapter 22: Lisbon III**

“Ms Murillo, would you care to tell the court why you are here?” The Judge asked.

Raquel blinked and mentally prepared herself for a long morning. She knew that something was off with the clocks, having had that confirmed to her when she walked into the courthouse and saw the clock say 7:45, instead of another time closer to four pm. So, clearly something strange was going on.

“I’m here because I was captured whilst trying to flee from the police.” Raquel answered.

“And why were you trying to flee from the police?” The Judge asked.

“Because alongside The Professor, I was leading the heist of the Bank of Spain.” She replied.

“And why were you doing that?” The Judge asked.

“To make a statement and to get leverage to ensure the return of one of our friends.” Raquel said.

“Aníbal Cortes?” The Judge asked.

“Yes.” Raquel said.

“And why did you want him back?” The Judge asked.

“Because he had been illegally detained in Africa and we wished for him to be freed. If he is to face judgement, let him face judgement in Spain.” Raquel answered.

“Even though the man, like yourself, was a criminal on the run from the law?” The Judge asked.

“I was not a criminal,” Raquel said. “And even if Mr Cortes is a criminal, he deserved a fair hearing, not to be kept in a cell like a rat in Africa.”

“So, you broke into the Bank of Spain, and Mr Cortes was given back to you, why has your gang remained in there?” The Judge asked.

Raquel smiled, Sergio had told her the judge would probably ask something like this to get a reaction out of her. She knew how to answer him though. “Because we are going to make a point.”

“A point?” The Judge asked.

“Yes. We’re going to show the world just how corrupt the system is, and we’re going to bring it down.” Raquel replied.

“The same system that has granted you a pre-trial hearing?” The Judge asked, sounding bemused.

“The same system that denied me a hearing within the time set out under law.” Raquel said.

The Judge frowned. “What do you mean? You were brought here, within the assigned time frame.”

“Not according to the clocks in the place where I was kept.” Raquel answered.

The Judge looked confused at this, one eyebrow higher than the other. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that when I looked at the clock outside, I saw that the time was quarter to seven in the morning, but when I was in the tent outside the Bank, I saw that the time was quarter to three. One of those clocks is lying.” Raquel answered.

“Are you sure it was not just a faulty clock?” The Judge asked.

“I am sure.” Raquel said.

“I see.” The Judge said. “So, you think that the police may have tried to prevent you from getting your hearing?”

“Yes.” Raquel said.

“And why do you think they may have done this?” The Judge asked.

“Because they do not want me to get anything like a fair trial.” Raquel said.

“I see.” The Judge replied. “I shall keep this in mind.” He was about to say something else when a loud bang sounded outside. Everyone instinctively crouched down or leaned down. Another loud bang off outside. A security guard opened the door and walked out and then came back and walked right to the judge, who then said. “This meeting is adjourned until tomorrow.” He banged his hammer and stood and walked out of the room.

Raquel looked after him in confusion, wondering just what the hell was going on. She stood up when the Judge got up and then walked with her guards. They led her out of the courtroom and into the hallway, they took a right at the portrait of King Felipe, and then continued walking straight. Then at the end of that hallway, they opened a door and they came into the car park.

Raquel wondered what had caused the bangs outside the courtroom and where exactly they had happened, she’d not seen anything when she’d been led outside, so perhaps they were in another part of the court house? Her guards were clearly wondering the same thing for they were muttering amongst themselves about the shortness of the hearing. As they came to a spot halfway between where the police van was and where the parking metre was, a group of men and a woman approached them.

A small, slightly balding old man nodded to her, and then whispered. “Paris is lovely this time of year.”

Raquel raised an eyebrow at that, but before she could reply, things moved quickly. Three of the men from the group sprang into action, knocking her guards out, whilst two other men dragged their bodies next to the parking metre. The small balding man looked at her and then barked out some words in Basque, and a young man stepped forward and undid her cuffs. Raquel sighed as the tension from the cuffs fell away and then she looked at the old man.

“Ms Murillo? The Professor sent us, please follow me.” The old man didn’t wait for her to respond, he turned around and walked away. Raquel waited for a moment, still not quite believing what was happening, then realising that she had to hurry, she walked quickly after the old man. He opened a door that led into another parking area, and then kept going, stopping when he came to the other side, he bent down and opened up a small hatch and climbed onto a small ladder. He looked at her and said. “This is the way to freedom.”

He then disappeared down into the darkness. Raquel took a breath and then followed him, trusting that Sergio had gotten this right. She didn’t think he would trust an idiot, but with everything that had happened recently, she wasn’t sure what to think anymore


	23. Denver III

**Chapter 23: Denver III**

A bullet whizzed passed him. “Fuck!” Denver yelled. Another one came right at him, thankfully the comms took the blow, he winced with pain but no blood came out. He fired off a few shots and then moved to a pillar which provided some protection.

“Tokyo, do you copy?” He asked. “Tokyo?” Nothing, he swore, clearly the bullets had damaged his comms device. Palermo was far behind him, and would probably be trying to think of a way to get to him. He couldn’t communicate with him without risking them both, so he took a breath.

He looked at his gun, said a prayer, then peered out from behind the pillar and fired out one shot, then another then another then a fourth. Then he hid behind the pillar. Retaliatory fire came then in rapid bursts. Going like clockwork. Denver took a deep breath and then peeked out and swore as a bullet just missed his face.

“This won’t do.” He said out loud. He counted to three then leaned out and fired out as quickly as he could. A yell from the other side told him that he’d found his mark. Not waiting for retaliation he fired off another set of bullets, this time there was more noise, and then he heard a whimper. He stopped firing and ran toward where he thought Gandía was.

The man was lying sprawled out, bleeding profusely in several places. “Fuck.” Denver swore. This wasn’t going to help them at all, he knew. He didn’t have long to think though for within moments Palermo appeared.

“What happened?” The older man asked.

Denver turned and looked at him. “He shot at me, so I fired back.”

“I can see that.” Palermo said. “We’re going to need to take him to the governor’s room.”

Denver didn’t protest, instead he put the safety on his gun, put it back in its holster and bent down and with Palermo, hauled Gandía all the way back to the Governor’s room. They threw him onto the ground and Palermo picked up the comms.

“Professor?” The man asked.

“I’m here, what’s the status?” The Professor asked.

“We’ve got Gandía, but he’s badly injured.” Palermo said.

“How did that happen?” The Professor asked.

Denver took the comms from Palermo and responded. “He was firing at me, I tried to neutralise him but he ended up getting badly injured.”

“No worries.” The Professor said. “He’s surplus to requirements now.”

“Professor?” Denver asked unsure what the man was going to say next.

“You’re going to leave him there and take Arturo Roman to the Governor’s panic room.” The Professor said.

“Professor, are you sure that’s a smart idea?” Denver asked.

“Yes.” The Professor replied. “Roman is desperate to be a hero, and the police know he’s in here. Therefore, you’re going to take him to the panic room, let him communicate with the police and then drive him to the roof.”

“Okay.” Denver replied, handing the comms device back to Palermo.

“Before you drive him to the roof, you’re going to tell him what his role is going to be, and you’re going to offer him an incentive.” The Professor said.

“What incentive?” Palermo asked.

“You’re going to tell him that if he cooperates he will get the chance to see Cincinnati.” The Professor said.

Denver felt as if he’d been struck by a hammer. Was the Professor really suggesting that he offer up the chance for that sick fuck to see Denver and Monica’s son? He really hoped not, but then the Professor continued.

“He’s not actually going to see the boy, but the mere promise of it will get him to comply.”

“You’re sure?” Palermo asked, looking at him.

“I am.” The Professor replied. “And you’re going to need to work quickly, Lisbon has broken out of her prison and is coming to you. You have about half an hour.”

“Okay.” Palermo replied, the comms went dead, and the man looked at him. “Are you ready?”

“I am.” Denver said.

“Good.” Palermo replied, the man moved away from the comms and walked passed him to the doorway, stopping only to say. “Don’t kill him, okay.”

“Okay.” Denver replied. He followed Palermo to the doorway, then they walked out, they continued down the hallway before turning and entering the room where Arturo was kept. The man was blindfolded and tied.

“What is it?” The man snarled. “What do you want?”

“You’re coming with us.” Denver said.

“Where?” Arturo demanded.

“To your freedom.” Denver said. He leant down and untied Arturo, helping the man up and leading him silently toward the governor’s room. When they got there they stopped and Denver made Arturo sit down.

“What’s going on?” Arturo asked.

Denver looked at Palermo who nodded, he then removed the blindfold. Arturo blinked and then spat at him. Denver wiped the spit off and said. “We’re going to give you a chance to earn your freedom here.”

“How?” Arturo demanded.

“You’re going to speak to the police. You’re going to phone them and tell them that you’ve managed to escape and that you’re heading to the roof with Gandía.” Denver said, he gestured to Gandía sprawled out on the floor behind them.

“Why should I believe you?” Arturo demanded.

“Because we’re going to take you to the panic room now so that you can speak with the police.” Denver answered.

“And how do I know you’re going to keep your word?” Arturo demanded.

Denver took a deep breath; he didn’t want to say this but he knew he had to. “If you do this, I’ll let you see our son.”

Arturo’s eyes widened as if he didn’t quite believe what had just been said. “Why?” he asked.

“Because that is how serious I am about this.” Denver replied.

A moment passed, then another, then finally the man said. “Fine. I will do it.”

Denver nodded, and put the blindfold back on Arturo, helped him up and said. “Come along then.” They walked the short distance into the panic room, Denver’s heart thumping all the while, he just hoped this would go according to plan and nothing bad happened. 


	24. Alicia II

**Chapter 24: Alicia II**

It felt like she’d been waiting for an age, but the clock on the wall said she’d only been here for twenty minutes. Alicia wasn’t nervous, she didn’t do nervousness, not after what had happened in Afghanistan all those years ago , ; but she was worried. Someone was going to take the fall for what had happened with Cortes, and she had a sinking feeling that it was going to be her who took the wrap for it. It was understandable , given how spineless most politicians were, but still, it rankled a little bit.

“Inspector Sierra?” A voice called her to the present. Alicia looked up and saw the Minister’s secretary looking at her. “The Minister will see you now.”

Alicia nodded, stood up and walked over to the doo r, s r. S he opened it and then walked through. The first thing she noticed was the painting of the King that hung on the wall. She laughed internally , ; she’d met the King once, after she’d returned from Afghanistan, and he’d told her he hated the Minister. She looked at the man then, he was balding, had once been handsome, but the excess of drink had turned him into a glut.

“Inspector, take a seat.” The man said, without looking up. Alicia took the seat opposite the man and waited.

After a moment, the minister looked at her and said. “Well this is quite the mess.”

Alicia didn’t say anything, she just waited. “I have spoken with Colonel Prieto and he has agreed to retire because of this mess. His press conference was a disaster.”

“Really?” Alicia asked. Prieto was usually a good public speaker.

“Yes.” The Minister said. “You did not watch Prieto’s conference?”

Alicia shook her head. “I was too busy driving here.”

“Very well.” The Minister said. “Well, in short he has to go and someone else involved in this whole thing has to go as well.”

“Well, you were the one who gave the order, Minister.” Alicia said bluntly.

The Minister looked as if he’d been hit in the head, and Alicia had to exert all the control necessary not to laugh. “I did what I thought was best, after hearing the advice given to me by Prieto and Tamayo, who I believe were acting on your advice.”

Alicia sighed. “So, am I going to have to go?” She had thought it might go this way. She had never been sure when she’d been in Africa if she was going to be protected or not.

“You’re going to give a press conference first.” The Minister said.

“A press conference?” Alicia asked, eyebrow raised. She’d never given a press conference before and she really didn’t want to start now.

“Yes.” The Minister said. “You’re going to need to explain yourself.”

“But you’re not going to let me tell the whole truth, are you?” Alicia asked , getting a sense of where this was going.

“Of course not, that would be far too damaging for the government.” The Minister replied.

“So, I am to go and give a press conference, lie about what actually happened, take all the blame and public outrage and then just quietly go off into the night?” Alicia asked.

“Yes.” The Minister said.

Alicia snorted. “And what do I get in return?”

“In return?” The Minister asked , surprised.

“Yes, you’re asking me to effectively destroy my own career and possibly my life. I want something in return.” Alicia said.

“Fine. We will pay out the rest of your pension with interest, and we will ensure that you get a nice home to retire to. You will never need to work again, and your child will be looked after.” The Minister said.

“Good.” Alicia said.

“And as for the business with your husband . , ” The Minister began.

“What about it?” Alicia demanded , immediately suspicious , h . H er husband had died of cancer, but he’d been helped along by some of the more powerful drugs available.

“I won’t mention where you got those drugs from.” The Minister said.

“Very well.” Alicia replied.

“Very well.” The Minister replied, he stood up, so she did as well, they shook hands then Alicia walked out of the room.

She was about to leave the reception area as well, when she heard a voice call out to her. She turned around and found the Minister’s secretary standing before her. The woman looked like she could have been Alicia’s twin, given their similar appearance. It was slightly disconcerting. Alicia took a breath and asked . , “Yes?”

The receptionist didn’t say anything, just handed her a card. Alicia took it. “What do you want me to do with this?” She asked.

“Have a look at it when you get back into your car, you may find it useful.” The woman said.

“Okay.” Alicia replied, she pocketed the thing and then walked out of the room, she followed her steps back to the car park, where she got into her car. She turned on the ignition and pulled out the card and looked at it.

It was white with an orange background and on it were a few words that got her heart racing.

_ If you want to join the resistance, you know where to go. _

She looked at the card again, read the words and then looked up and swore. 


	25. Tamayo

**Chapter 25: Tamayo**

Tamayo found himself glued to the television as Alicia walked on. He’d received a phone call from the Minister of the Interior informing him that Alicia was going to give a press conference where she took all of the blame for what had happened in Africa. He’d breathed a sigh of relief at that, knowing then that his pension wouldn’t be threatened and that he’d get to live a comfortable retirement and not have to answer to the King for what he had ordered.

Just as Alicia was about to speak, the phone rang. Tamayo cursed and picked the thing up. “Hello?” He asked.

“Colonel, it’s Arturo Roman.” The man sounded out of breath.

Tamayo put the phone against his chest and called out. “Someone trace this call.” He picked up the phone again and said. “How can I help you?”

“I’ve managed to escape from the robbers, Colonel, and I’m running to the top of the building. I’ve got Gandía with me, but he’s badly injured. The robbers are figuring out where I am. Can you help me?” Roman asked.

Tamayo looked at the men on the computers who whispered. “It’s coming from the Bank, Colonel.”

Tamayo nodded then responded to Roman. “What help do you need?”

“A helicopter out of here, preferably. Gandía has lost a lot of blood, I don’t think the robbers will want him being treated in the hospital.” Roman replied.

Tamayo cursed. If Gandía died, then they were all fucked seven ways to hell. He looked at Suarez and whispered. “How soon could a helicopter get there?”

“Maybe in about fifteen minutes.” Suarez replied.

Tamayo nodded then speaking over the phone to Roman said. “A helicopter will be with you in fifteen minutes. When you get to the top of the roof, find cover and do not leave it until you see the helicopter.”

“Okay.” Roman said.

“And stay on the line.” Tamayo added.

“Okay.” Roman replied. Tamayo heard what sounded like footsteps and gunfire on the other end of the line and had to fight to keep control over his emotions. He didn’t want to scare Roman. The man was not brave. Tamayo had figured that out within about five minutes of meeting the man. He didn’t like risking himself, but he also wanted to be considered a hero. Losing his lover to one of those robbers had cleared fucked with his head, more so than his wife and son leaving him.

As the gunshots got louder, Tamayo turned to Suarez and asked, “How long until the helicopter gets there?”

“It’s just taking off, Colonel.” Suarez replied.

“Fuck.” Tamayo said. He found himself drawn to the television again and asked someone to turn the volume up, what he heard made him swear some more.

Alicia Sierra was at the podium in the Grand Theatre where Prieto had been a few hours ago, and the words coming out of her mouth were giving Tamayo an aneurism. “You see, they will tell you that I acted alone, but I did not. I acted on the orders of my superiors, Colonels Tamayo and Prieto. Everything that was done to that boy was done on their orders.”

“How can we believe you?” One of the reporters asked.

Tamayo saw Alicia pause, and he hoped she would say that they couldn’t, but then she grinned and pulled out a piece of paper. He heard her reply. “This piece of paper confirms it. It has been circulated to all your editors. In it you will find emails written from Tamayo and Prieto with confirmation that their emails were actually from them, and you will find texts and call logs showing that they discussed what to do about Mr Cortes.”

“Fuck!” Tamayo yelled.

Sierra stopped speaking and walked away from the podium. Tamayo continued cursing, and it was only the sound of a loud gunshot from the other end of the phone that drew him back to his present reality. “What was that?” He yelled over the phone. He would worry about Sierra later, he had to focus on the here and now.

“They’ve got big guns, Colonel.” Roman replied, panting down the line. “How long until the helicopter comes? I think I’m running out of bullets.”

“Suarez!” Tamayo barked.

“Five minutes, Sir.” Suarez replied.

“Roman, stay on the line.” Tamayo barked. He pressed a button that indicated that Roman was now on loudspeaker. He then looked at Suarez and said. “Put me through to the helicopter.”

Suarez hastened to comply. “Hello?” He heard a deep voice ask.

“This is Colonel Tamayo, how far away are you?”

“We’re going to be there in five minutes, Colonel.” The man replied.

“Good, you should see two men on the roof, lower the helicopter so that you can collect them.” Tamayo ordered.

“Of course.”

“Colonel!” He heard Roman yell over the loudspeaker. “They’ve found me, they’re firing at me.”

_ Fuck! _ Tamayo thought to himself as gunshots echoed over the line. “Stay calm and keep cover.” Tamayo barked over the phone.

They heard more gunshots, but Roman didn’t speak, Tamayo felt his heart racing. The pilot spoke over the other line. “We’ve got him, Colonel. We’ve found them.”

“Okay, be careful.” Tamayo said.

Just as he said that the shooting stopped. “Why’s the shooting stopped?” Tamayo asked then.

“We’ve got them both, Colonel.” The pilot said.

“Are they shooting at you?” Tamayo asked, wondering if Roman’s phone had gone dead.

“No colonel, they seemed to have stopped.”

That was odd. “Okay get out of there as quickly as possible.”

“Of course, Colonel.”

“Roman, are you there?” Tamayo asked.

There was nothing but silence for a moment, and then. “Yes, we’re both in the helicopter.”

“Okay, you’re going to be taken to hospital, and then we’re going to interview you.”

“Okay.”

“Colonel.” Someone said.

“What?” Tamayo asked, looking at the man.

“Roman’s phone hasn’t moved from the roof.”

“That can’t be possible, he said he was on the helicopter.”

“He lied.”

“Why?”

Tamayo’s phone beeped then. He picked it up and looked at it and yelled.

_ The Resistance wins again _


	26. Lisbon IV

**Chapter 26: Lisbon IV**

The moment her feet touched the ground, Raquel breathed a sigh of relief. They had pulled it off. From the moment she’d been rescued from the courthouse and been bundled into the van and taken to the helipad, her heart had been hammering. Filled with worry about whether it would go well, whether the cops would find them, or whether the helicopter’s signal would be picked up. All of that had gone through her head, and now here she was. She looked up, saw the helicopter depart, and then turned to look at the people before her.

She looked to her right, saw the snipers pulling back, and then ran as quickly as she could into the building, where she was embraced by Palermo. She took off her mask and smiled. “It’s good to see you.”

“You as well, Lisbon.” Palermo said.

“Lisbon?” A voice asked, Raquel looked down and saw Tokyo standing there, looking at her hesitantly.

Raquel let go of Palermo and moved toward Tokyo and hugged her. “It’s good to see you.” She whispered.

“You as well.” Tokyo replied.

The door opened and Denver walked in accompanied by Roman. “We need to get back down into the Bank.” Denver said.

“Right, let’s do that.” Raquel said. She let go of Tokyo and walked down the steps, and as she did so, she found herself thinking about what had just happened. The snipers would’ve seen the shootout, or the fake shootout as it were, they would’ve heard the murmurings over their radios, and they would’ve seen the helicopter move away, with what looked like Arturo Roman inside. How they hadn’t clicked onto what had actually happened she didn’t know. But she didn’t want to find out.

The moment she got onto solid ground and entered the Governor’s room, she saw the head of the governor’s security lying on a stretcher, passed out. “What’s wrong with him?” She asked.

“He was injured trying to kill Denver.” Palermo said. Raquel turned and looked first at Palermo and then at Denver before turning back to look at Gandía and asking.

“Does The Professor know?”

“Yes.” Palermo replied.

Raquel nodded then made her way to the comms device, she picked up the microphone and said. “Professor, it’s Lisbon, I’m here.”

There was a moment of static and then, “Good, are you safe?”

“Yes.” Raquel answered.

“Good.” Sergio replied.

“What are our orders?” Raquel asked.

“They will have realised that we faked the rescue of Roman, so you’re going to need to keep him under watch again. Furthermore, you’re going to need to start packing the gold into bags, Barcelona is going to send transport in the next twenty minutes.” Sergio said.

“Okay.” Raquel replied.

“And you’re going to let Gandía go.” Sergio said.

“What?!” Raquel heard Tokyo exclaim.

“He’s ill, and I don’t want him dying. You’re going to let him go. As you do that, you’re going to want two of the hostages armed with guns standing guard. The Colonel is going to try and send men in to overwhelm you.” Sergio said.

“What about the truce?” Raquel asked.

“Forget the truce. They’ve already broken it with their time warping shenanigans. Just be sure to have people guarding the doors when you let Gandía go.” Sergio said.

“Okay.” Raquel replied. The line went dead. Raquel turned around and looked at Denver. “You know what to do with Roman.” Denver nodded and she heard him drag a protesting Roman back to wherever he had come from.

Tokyo spoke then. “What did he mean by time warping?”

Raquel sighed, thinking of the best way to explain this. “There was an operation the police had coined, a few years ago, called Operation Chronos. It would allow them to manipulate the time displayed on all clocks that were in public institutions due to them all operating on the same frequency. It appears that Tamayo or Sierra deployed Chronos and warped the time here, making it seem as if time had gone quicker than it actually had.”

“Why would they do that?” Tokyo asked.

“Because they want to make us panic. They were trying to break me when they questioned me. They are likely trying to do the same thing here as well.” Raquel replied.

“So, what do we do?” Tokyo asked.

“Exactly what the Professor ordered. We’re going to get ready to leave, and disperse.” Raquel said.

“And what about him?” Tokyo asked, gesturing to Gandía.

“We give him to the police.” Raquel said


	27. Alicia III

**Chapter 27: Alicia III**

The door opened without much fuss. That surprised her. She had thought that as this was his hideaway, the man would’ve tried to make it a bit more secure. But no fuss, she was in now. She could hear him talking to someone, so she slowly drew her gun, and prepared it. She stopped when she found herself standing behind him. He had stopped speaking.

She said nothing for a moment, waiting to see if he would speak. When he said nothing, she spoke. “Why did you ask me to come here?”

“I said no such thing.” The Professor replied. “I merely asked my friend to tell you that you knew where to find me.”

“How did you know that?” Alicia asked. Truth be told, it had taken her some time to figure it out, but then she’d realised that he’d be somewhere where the clocks were still on the government network, hence why the trick had worked to begin with. From there it had taken a bit of guesswork before she’d arrived here.

“You’re smart.” The Professor replied, still not turning around.

“So, what? Was this some sort of a game for you?” Alicia asked.

The Professor did turn around then and he smiled. “Yes, in a manner of speaking.”

She kept her gun fixed on him as she asked. “And what about the heist? Was that a game?”

“No.” The Professor said seriously. “That is about justice and revenge.”

“Revenge?” Alicia asked. She had always suspected there was more to this than met the eye.

“The police murdered my brother.” The Professor said.

“When?” Alicia asked, she hadn’t known the man had a brother.

“Some time ago. I wanted to show that I could bring everything to an end.” The Professor replied.

“So, what now?” Alicia asked.

The Professor smiled. “That is up to you, Inspector.”

“What do you mean?” Alicia asked.

“Well, you are the one with the gun. You can either decide to shoot me now, and sound the alert. Or you can try and arrest me and take me in, knowing that if you do so, you will also be arrested.” The Professor said.

Alicia sighed; she wondered if she should have reconsidered doing what she’d done at that press conference, but at the same time, her mind rejected that. She had stood up for herself, fuck the consequences. “There’s a third option.”

“Oh?” The Professor asked.

Alicia nodded at her stomach. “I’m pregnant. I cannot go to prison as a pregnant woman, and I cannot go back to the police, and I cannot go on the run.”

“So, what are you going to do?” The Professor asked.

“I could take control of this whole thing, or hold you to ransom and force your gang to keep a portion of the money aside for me.” Alicia said.

“You could, but we both know how complicated that would be.” The Professor said.

“How did you know that I would be meeting the minister?” Alicia asked then.

“I hadn’t bugged the room, if that is what you’re asking.” The Professor replied.

“Then how?” She demanded.

“I have friends in the department.” The Professor replied.

“And the woman?” Alicia asked. “The Minister’s secretary?”

“My sister in law.” The Professor replied with a smile.

“How long have you been planning this for?” She demanded.

“A long, long time.” The Professor said.

“I should take you into the police.” Alicia said.

“You could.” The Professor replied. “Or you could join us?”

“Join you?” Alicia snorted.

“Well, you’ve said it yourself, you can’t re-join the police, you will be arrested, and I’ve pointed out what holding me hostage would do. So, you’ve got one choice left.” The Professor said. “Think about it. Join us, and you’ll get a cut, no hassle. And you will have something for your child.”

Alicia thought on that. The man spoke sense, irritatingly enough. She needed to secure a future for her child, and this seemed like the best way to do it. Perhaps it would make her life easier, especially if she were on the run. She was about to reply when she felt something wet drip down her leg. She looked down and saw a pool of water at her feet, she looked up at the Professor then and said. “I think my water broke.”


	28. Palermo IV

**Chapter 28: Palermo IV**

Palermo looked at Gandía and frowned. The Professor had told them to let the man go and so they were doing that, but he wasn’t sure if this was such a good idea. The truce was broken, and as such the police were never going to stand down now. The radio buzzed and he picked up a microphone.

“I’ve spoken with the Colonel, he’s agreed to let you push Gandía outside, without interference.”

“Okay.” Palermo replied. “How far away are those trucks?”

“About fifteen minutes away.” The Professor said.

“Okay.” Palermo said. The line went dead, he looked at Stockholm and nodded, she pressed the button and the doors slowly opened. Palermo gestured at Denver and Helsinki and watched as they lifted Gandía up and toward the door. Time seemed to stop as they moved, slowly but surely. The moment they put him on the top step and then walked back in, Palermo nodded to Stockholm who then closed the doors. He exhaled in relief.

“Right, let’s go.” He turned around and walked away, back toward the governor’s office, where they could properly talk.

He didn’t think as he walked up the stairs, he just did. Time was running out, he hoped Nairobi and Bogota had been able to get everything sorted and packed. They were going to need to get out as soon as the trucks arrived. How the Professor intended for them to slip away he didn’t know. Last time there had been a shootout, and he was starting to think that would be the case here as well.

He got into the office and turned around to see Tokyo, Lisbon and Denver come in after him. He took a breath, then pressed the radio. “Nairobi, what’s your status?”

“We’ve managed to get three quarters of the melted gold into the bags, we need some help.” Nairobi replied.

“Okay. Denver and Helsinki will join you.” Palermo replied, Denver nodded and walked out of the room. Palermo then looked at Lisbon and Tokyo. “This is where things are going to get complicated.”

“How are we going to get out?” Tokyo demanded. “We can’t just waltz out the front door, and the tunnels are all closed off.”

“The Professor has a plan.” Lisbon said.

“Are you sure of that?” Tokyo demanded.

“Yes.” Lisbon replied.

“And why hasn’t he shared it with us?” Tokyo demanded.

Before Lisbon could respond, Palermo replied. “He has. You just need to pay attention to what’s been going on outside.”

“What do you mean?” Tokyo asked.

“Well, think about it.” Palermo said. “The Professor spoke with the Colonel, which means that the Inspector isn’t running things anymore. The videos that we had Rio record clearly ruined her. That means we’re dealing with the intelligence and military, which means they’re going to be ruthless, and the Professor’s going to respond in kind.”

He saw the wheels turning in Tokyo’s head. “So, it’s going to be a case of moving forward and causing the people to move?”

“Yes.” Palermo said.

“I see.” Tokyo replied.

“And of course, Roman is going to have to be dealt with.” Palermo said.

“What do you mean?” Lisbon asked.

“Well we can’t leave him be, if we do, he’ll probably try and concoct some bullshit lie to ensure the police take him seriously. That will put Denver and Stockholm in danger.” Palermo pointed out.

“So, what do you suggest we do?” Lisbon asked.

Palermo pulled out his gun and smiled. “We handle this the old fashioned way.”

Before anyone else could reply, the radio crackled. “Palermo, we’ve packed everything.”

Palermo shelved his gun and smiled. “Okay, meet us by the back entrance.”

He saw that Lisbon was about to say something and so shook his head. “We’ll have this discussion later.”


	29. Tokyo III

**Chapter 29: Tokyo III**

_ As the clock began to count down, there was a general sense of anticipation and excitement amongst the gang. We could taste freedom. The cops were going to try and disrupt us, we knew that, but we also knew that The Professor would come good and we would break free. Nothing could stop us now. At least, that was what we thought. _

Silene grabbed one of the bags and put it next to the door. She stretched her back and looked at Rio, he was frowning. “Are you okay?” She asked.

Rio looked at her, and her heart ached. They were not together, but they weren’t separated. At least, that’s what she had concluded after their last proper discussion. “No.”

“What’s wrong?” She asked.

“How the fuck are we getting out of here?” Rio asked, his hands moving to his throat.

Silene moved to Rio and took his hands in hers. “The Professor’s got it worked out. There are three trucks coming toward the back end of this shit hole. One truck will take some of the gold, then the other two trucks will take us and the rest of the gold.”

“How do you know that the police won’t find out about them?” Rio asked.

“Because their attention is on the front of the Bank and on the air. They’re not paying attention to the back streets.” Silene replied, remembering what The Professor had said to them when they’d been planning this.

“And you’re sure this is going to work?” Rio asked.

“Yes.” Silene said. She trusted the Professor. She believed him, and he had never let her down before.

“Okay.” Rio replied.

Silene nodded, kissed his cheek and then immediately apologised. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have….”

Rio shook his head. “It’s fine.”

She felt hope bubble up inside of her then. “So, are we?”

“Can we wait until the heist is over and then discuss this?” Rio asked.

Silene felt her heart get ripped in two, but she nodded nonetheless. “Of course.”

Rio nodded. “I do want to sort this out,” he gestured between the two of them. “but I do want to get out alive.”

“Of course.” Silene said.

“Oi! You two!” Palermo bellowed.

Silene turned around and saw the man standing there, staring at them. “What?” Silene demanded.

“If you’re done trying to sort out your love lives, I need you to look out over the hostages. The trucks will be here in five minutes. Denver and Bogota are going to load the bags into the first truck.” Palermo said.

“Okay.” Silene replied. She pushed passed the man, Rio followed her, they turned around a bend and then found themselves facing the hostages. They looked terrified.

Silene looked at Rio and he looked at her, and then she looked at the hostages. She cleared her throat and said, “Thank you all for cooperating with us. I know that this hasn’t been easy for you, but by cooperating you’ve made everything much smoother. So, for that thank you.”

“Fuck off.” Came the reply from somewhere to the far left. She turned to her left and saw Roman slumped against a pillar, his eyes black, his skin cut. The man had tried to fight Denver earlier and been beaten pretty badly.

“Mr Roman, I’d keep quiet if I were you.” Silene said calmly, trying not to let her disgust show. The man was an animal.

“Fuck off.” Roman said.

“Hey!” Rio barked.

Silene looked at Rio and shook her head. They didn’t need anything happening now, not when they were so close. Silene ignored Roman and started walking around, but Roman just wouldn’t stop. “Fuck you, whore.”

“Mr Roman, sit down.” Silene said without even looking at him.

“Fuck off.” Roman barked.

She heard footsteps, turned and saw him coming toward her, Rio was barking something at him, and she was about to raise her gun when there was a loud banging. She turned away from Roman and saw Manilla standing next to the fire hydrant which was on the floor. She raised an eyebrow and Manilla shrugged which caused her to laugh. She turned around and Roman had stopped, he was curled up in a ball at her feet, whimpering, pathetically.

  
  



	30. Nairobi III

**Chapter 30: Nairobi III**

Ágata walked up the stairs and took the turn into the governor’s office. She avoided the window, but stood in the middle of the room and looked at Lisbon. The woman who had fallen for the Professor and who he had fallen for, the woman who they’d gone through so much to get back, and the woman who would see them safely free. Ágata respected her immensely, and hoped that this all went well, for her as well as for all of them.

“Is everything okay?” She asked.

Lisbon turned around then and nodded. “Yes, the trucks should be here in about five minutes. Is everything sorted?”

“Yes, all the bags are by the door.” Ágata replied. “Denver and Bogota are going to take them out when the trucks get here.”

“Okay, where’s Helsinki?” Lisbon asked.

“He’s keeping an eye on the hostages at the front, with Stockholm.” Ágata replied.

“And is he okay?” Lisbon asked, Helsinki had taken quite the blow to the head when chasing Gandía earlier.

“Yes, he says he’s okay, and I think he’s okay.” Ágata replied.

“Good.” Lisbon said.

Ágata shifted around and then spoke. “I have a question for you.”

Lisbon raised an eyebrow and replied. “Yes?”

“Why did you agree to let Gandía go?” Ágata asked. “He’s a dangerous man, and yes he’s close to death, but that surely was even more of a reason to keep him here.”

Lisbon sighed. “Because we are not murderers, Nairobi. Palermo might be, but none of the rest of us are. I did not want that on our consciouses.”

“And if he talks?” Ágata asked.

“What will he tell them?” Lisbon asked. “He doesn’t know our real names, he doesn’t know what motivates us, he knows nothing.”

“He could tell them exactly what we look like.” Ágata said, though she knew she was grasping at straws.

“They already know what we look like, Nairobi.” Lisbon replied.

Ágata sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”

Lisbon walked toward her then and took her hand. “I know you’re scared and worried because they took your son, but I promise you, we’ll get him back and he will know the type of woman his mother is. You’ll get to show him.”

Ágata felt a lump form in her chest. “That’s sweet of you.” She managed to get out. “But I don’t think that’s the right thing for my son.”

Lisbon frowned. “Why?”

Ágata laughed. “I was a screw up as a mother, I used him to get drugs, and I abandoned him when he needed me the most. I don’t think I should be raising him.”

“You don’t think you need another chance?” Lisbon asked.

Ágata shook her head. “No, I blew the only chance I got, and I don’t want to screw up my kid anymore. He deserves to be happy.” She felt tears drop down her cheek then, Lisbon hugged her, and sounded as if she were about to say something when the radio crackled.

“There’s movement outside.”

They broke apart and moved to the window, and sure enough there was a truck driving right toward the command tent. “What the fuck is that?” Ágata murmured.

Lisbon moved quickly to the radio and picked it up. “Professor, are you there?”

There was a moment of silence and then. “Yes.”

“There’s a truck outside trying to get into the command tent, do you know who it is?” Lisbon asked.

“Yes.” The Professor replied.

“Who?” Lisbon asked.

“Inspector Sierra.” Was the reply.

“What?!” Ágata and Lisbon exclaimed at the same time.

“She’s the distraction.” The Professor replied, before the line went dead.

Ágata looked at Lisbon and asked. “Distraction?”


	31. Alicia IV

**Chapter 31: Alicia IV**

_ Her water broke, she looked down and felt the dampness all over. The Professor panicked for a moment and then led her to a sofa, where the contractions began. It was a pain like no other, her pants were removed, and she was stripped bare. The man surprisingly knew what he was doing, despite looking mightily uncomfortable-had he been a gynaecologist or a nurse in a previous life? The pain took forever and yet, before she knew it, it had stopped. _

_ She waited to hear crying, but there was nothing. The Professor took the child and held it, he tried to hit the bottom as you were supposed to and nothing happened. He cut the cord and nothing happened. He tried breathing air into the child and nothing happened. Her child was dead. The Professor had looked at her and said as much and apologised, and the only thing she had said was. “I will get my revenge.” _

That was why she was in a truck, driving as fast as she could, through the streets of Madrid, toward the Bank. Her body ached, her pants were soaked in blood, and she was determined to get to the Bank and have her revenge. Tamayo and those shits who were his boss had done this to her. They’d made her come out of her leave period to handle this shitty case, and then discarded her when it had become inconvenient for them. She’d have her revenge.

She stopped the truck when she got to the separate entrance to the command centre, the crowd was to the right, she was on the left. She revved the engine and then drove through the barrier, smashing it to pieces. Just as she was about to get to the tent she stopped the truck, put it into park and then opened the door. She got out and held her hands out so that the officers who had come out to see her knew she meant no harm.

“Inspector Sierra!” That was Suarez, he had his gun pointed at her.

“I’m not an inspector anymore, Suarez.” Alicia replied.

“Why are you here?” Suarez asked, and was that a hint of fear in his voice?

“Because I have something to say to Tamayo.” Alicia said.

“Well stay there then.” Suarez replied, he disappeared inside the tent and reappeared with Tamayo in tow.

Tamayo looked horrified when he saw her. “What are you doing here?” He snarled.

“I’ve come to tell you that you were wrong.” Alicia said.

“Wrong?!” Tamayo exclaimed, clearly sweating.

“Yes.” Alicia said. “You were wrong about the Professor and about all of this.” She gestured to the bank and to the tent.

“How so?” Tamayo asked.

“He’s not trying to destroy, he’s trying to rebuild. He’s trying to expose the corruption within the heart of the system.” Alicia said.

“And you know this how?” Tamayo asked, sounding bemused.

“I spoke with him.” Alicia said. “I met him.”

“YOU MET HIM?!” Tamayo shouted. He looked at Suarez who looked at his junior officers, they all drew their guns and pointed them at her.

“Yes.” Alicia said. “I wanted to see if he was as bad as I’d been told.”

“Where is he?” Tamayo demanded.

Alicia snorted. “I can’t tell you that.”

“Why the fuck not?” Tamayo asked.

“Because I’ve joined him.” Alicia said.

“You’ve joined him.” Tamayo repeated.

“Yes.” Alicia replied.

“Why?” Tamayo asked. “He stands for everything you claimed to hate.”

Alicia snorted. “No. You do though. You lied, you abandoned me to the wolves to save your own skin. You are a poor Spaniard.”

“He’s committing treason!” Tamayo snarled. “You think the King will accept you if you do this?”

Alicia laughed. “We both know the King will do better working with him than he would with you or any of the other lickspittles about the place.”

She heard a gun cock then and looked at the police officer who had done that. “Are you going to shoot me? I’m an unarmed woman.”

“Who drove a truck through the barrier.” Tamayo replied. “And if you’re with him you’re also a traitor and a terrorist.”

Alicia snorted, she took a step closer to Tamayo. “Are you really going to shoot me?”

Tamayo didn’t reply, and Alicia took another step closer to the man. Then another, and then another. When she was just inches away from him, she spoke. “I miscarried my baby, because of you.”

“I…” Tamayo began.

“I told you I didn’t want to do this whole thing, but you made me come. You told me that I would get promoted if I did this, and so I came. The pressure and the strain and then being the hanging dog, made me miscarry my baby. You took my child from me.” Alicia said as she took another step forward.

“Alicia…” Tamayo said pleadingly.

“I can’t forgive you for that.” Alicia said, she moved to draw something from her pocket and she heard the shot. She didn’t feel anything but when she looked down, blood was coming out of her neck. She looked up and gurgled a laugh.


	32. The Professor IV

**Chapter 32: The Professor IV**

Sergio watched via a video link to Marseille’s phone as the police murdered Alicia Sierra and sighed. He had known this would happen. Tamayo had become jumpy and erratic since Sierra’s press conference, and with the King no doubt changing his mind on various things, the police and the interior ministry had it all to play for. He watched as the crowd realised what had happened and as they broke through the barricades, surging forward to mob the police.

“Okay, you’ve got what we needed, you can return now.” Sergio said into the headset.

“Copy that.” Marseille replied. The video feed went dead and Sergio picked up the microphone.

“Lisbon, are you there?” He asked.

“I am. What’s happened?” She asked.

“Inspector Sierra was murdered by the police.” Sergio answered.

“What?!” Raquel exclaimed.

“I know, but you must get everything ready. The trucks will be there in two minutes. Is everything prepared?” Sergio said.

“Yes, but Professor, why did she do that? Why did they do that?” Raquel asked.

“Because she betrayed them and because they betrayed her.” Sergio answered simply.

“How did she come to work for us?” Raquel asked.

“Because they betrayed her and they made her lose her child.” Sergio said.

“She miscarried?!” Raquel exclaimed.

“Yes.” Sergio replied.

“Sergio….” Raquel whispered.

“Not now, we need to get you all prepared. The trucks will be there soon. The Police are currently dealing with the protestors, but some of their men will be sent to infiltrate the bank. You all need to be at the back exit now.” Sergio stated.

“What about you?” Raquel asked.

“I’m going to wait until you’re all at the doors then I’ll go and meet you at the meeting point.” Sergio said.

“You’re sure she’ll show up?” Raquel asked.

“Yes. Now go.” Sergio replied, and he put the microphone down. He hit a button on his keyboard and watched as Raquel and Nairobi moved from the governor’s room to the stairs and then toward the doors at the back entrance. The others joining them. He took a breath, saw the doors open, and the Serbians move into business, satisfied that everything was going according to plan, he hit another button, switched off the computers. Then he stood up, moved to the railing, grabbed his jacket, and put it on, then grabbed a matchbox from his pocket.

He pulled out a match, lit it, and then threw it onto the wiring. As it started to burn, he moved to the manhole, put the matchbox back into his pocket, opened the manhole, stopped, pulled out the matchbox, and took out another match, lit it and threw it. Then he threw the matchbox into the gathering fire.

Satisfied, he started clambering down the manhole, taking a breath when he entered the darkness. He followed the pathway he’d mapped out years ago, listening to the fire raging above him. Then when it seemed as though there would be no ending, he found a door, he pushed against the door, it opened and he stepped out into the bright sunshine of a Madrid morning.

He moved away from the door, and walked down the street, stopping at a lamp post. He waited a few moments and then smiled when a blue car pulled up. He opened the door and got in.

“All good?” A woman with auburn hair asked.

“All good.” Sergio replied. “Let’s go.”

“Excellent.” The woman replied. She put the car in gear and off they went. Sergio smiled as the car moved, it had gone so well.

“Thank you, Tatiana.” Sergio said then.


	33. Stockholm III

**Chapter 33: Stockholm III**

Monica looked at Helsinki, he looked a bit worse for wear, thanks to the giant bruise on his face, but he smiled at her. “Go, go help Denver and Bogota, I’ll keep an eye on the hostages.” She said.

“You’re sure?” Helsinki asked.

“Yes.” Monica replied. Helsinki nodded and then walked off. Monica turned to face the hostages. They were all remarkably quiet. Even Arturo. Though that might well be because Manilla had put a gun in his mouth and told him that if he tried anything again, he’d be worse than dead. How long that would last for she didn’t know, but she welcomed the silence.

The moment she finished that thought though, Arturo spoke, as if emboldened by Helsinki’s leaving. “You’re never going to get away with this.”

Monica tried to ignore him, instead focusing on looking at the hostages one by one, to see if any of them were going to do something foolish.

“You’re not going to get away with this.” Arturo said again.

Monica ignored him, this time checking her watch.

“Are you panicking?” Arturo asked.

Monica ignored him, looking at a speck of dust on her jumpsuit. She brushed it off, but then when she looked up he was standing right before her. “What are you doing?” She demanded.

“I’m coming to ask you something.” Arturo replied loudly.

“Sit down and shut up.” Monica snapped.

Arturo laughed. “You’re scared.”

“Arturo, sit down.” Monica demanded.

“No.” Arturo replied, she raised her gun and he stepped in front of it, his chest pressing against it. “Go on shoot.”

Monica felt the trigger and was about to press it when she stopped. What was she doing? She wasn’t a killer, she didn’t want to kill this man, as much as she might despise him, find him pathetic and want him gone. She wasn’t going to kill him. Looking at him then, she could tell that’s what he wanted. He wanted her to kill him so that he could leave a mark on her. She wasn’t going to give him that.

“You’re too much of a coward to do that.” Arturo said then, grinning sadistically. “Are you going to let your boy toy know that? That you couldn’t kill the father of your child.”

“Shut up.” Monica said weakly.

“You could never hurt me, could you Monica? You still like me, even if you don’t love me. And me? Well, I still want to fuck you.” Arturo said.

“Shut up.” Monica replied, her heart racing. She was scared now.

“No.” Arturo replied, grinning like a maniac. “Either you have to kill me, or this is going to continue.”

Monica felt tears spring in her eyes. “Why?” She asked. “Why are you doing this?”

“Because I lost everything. I lost everything when your fuck toy and his friends came into the Mint that day. Everything. I cannot accept that. I will have my revenge.” Arturo snarled.

“Sit down, please, Arturo.” Monica begged.

“No.” Arturo replied. “Now, are you going to let me see my son or not?”

Monica had no desire to let the man see his son, but she also knew that if she said that out loud that things would get very ugly, so she nodded. “I will, please just sit down.”

“No.” Arturo replied.

“Why?” Monica asked.

“You’re going to have to tell him.” Arturo said.

“When?” Monica asked.

“Now.” Arturo said.

“Fine.” Monica replied. She took a deep breath and then called out, “Denver!”

A moment passed and then her husband and, surprisingly, Palermo appeared. “Yes?” Denver asked, looking at her.

Monica looked at him and sighed. “I’ve promised Arturo that if he sits down now, he’ll get to see Cinci, is that okay?”

Denver looked torn, as if he wanted to swear at Arturo but also not, for fear of what might happen. “Fine.”

Monica nodded her thanks then turned and looked at Arturo. “Now will you sit down?”

“No.” Arturo replied.

“Why?” Monica demanded.

“Because you’re not getting out of here.” Arturo replied. Monica didn’t know what happened next. She was being pushed and shoved, she felt an arm around her, she felt suffocated, as if the very life was being sucked out of her.

She struggled, she fought back, she felt skin touch skin, she heard someone shout, she bit on someone’s hand and heard them yelp, and then she remembered she had a gun. She raised it, but didn’t fire it, at least she didn’t think she had. But then the next thing she knew there was a loud bang. 

Monica blinked, her senses coming back to her. The weight that had been pressing against her had gone, she looked around, saw startled faces staring back at her. She stepped forward, felt her boot slide, she looked down. Arturo was staring back at her, blood pooling out of a wound in his neck.

She gasped.

“Monica….” She turned around, Denver was looking at her, his hand outstretched. Slowly she took it and allowed herself to be led away. 


	34. Palermo V

**Chapter 34: Palermo V**

“Has everything been loaded in?” Palermo asked.

“Yes.” Bogota replied.

“Good, then tell the Serbs they can go.” Palermo ordered.

Bogota nodded, walked to the front of the truck and barked something at the driver, the driver clearly nodded for the truck started and drove off. Palermo looked at the other two trucks that were parked to the left and right of where the first truck had been. He took a breath; the nerves were creeping in. It was actually happening; they were about to get away with it.

“Tokyo, Rio, Helsinki, Manilla you will go in the left truck.” Palermo said. “Stockholm, Denver, Bogota, Nairobi and Lisbon, you will go in the right truck.”

“What truck will you go in?” Lisbon asked.

“I’ll go in the left truck. Bogota, I’m counting on you to get the right truck through any check points that there might be.” Palermo said looking at the big man.

“Understood.” Bogota replied.

Palermo took a deep breath. “I am proud of you all. It hasn’t been easy, but we’ve done something remarkable here. We’ve brought the resistance to the people and now we’re going to reap the fruits of that.”

“It’s been fucking difficult.” Denver said, prompting Palermo to laugh which encouraged others to laugh.

He was about to say something else when he heard a loud bang and a shout. His heart almost stopped, had the demonstrations outside finished? He hoped not, they needed that to get away. There was another loud bang and he swore. “Everyone get into the trucks; I’ll go and see what the situation is.” He brought his gun to the front and walked back into the building. The moment he got close enough to the hallway he was able to see what had happened.

The doors had been completely blown open and members of the police were in the building searching for them. He knew that if they heard the trucks start that they were finished. So, he took a breath and stepped into the room and said as loudly as possible. “Gentlemen, are you looking for me?”

One of the men, he seemed like the leader, looked at him and barked, “Where are the others?”

Palermo smiled. “Oh they’re about.” He hoped that they would have gone by now. He looked down very quickly, and sighed in thankfulness. At least his radio was on so that whoever had theirs on could hear what was going on.

“Where are they?” The man asked, raising his gun and pointing it at him.

Palermo smiled. “Around.”

He heard the gun cock. “Don’t play games, where are they?”

Palermo smiled, his heart thudding in his chest. “Around.”

“Where is Arturo Roman?” Another man asked.

Palermo laughed. “Over there somewhere.” He replied pointing to the middle part of the hallway.

A policeman moved to the spot and looked at the body and then said. “He’s dead.”

The main man looked at Palermo then and asked. “Did you kill him?”

_ No, but I won’t let you try and hunt down Stockholm.  _ “Yes, he was an annoying little fuck. He got what he deserved.”

A series of guns were pointed in his direction then. “You know you’re not going to come out of here alive.” The main man said.

Palermo grinned. “I was counting on that.” He had never planned on escaping. He didn’t want to live anymore, his time on this planet was done.

“One last time. Where are the others?”

“About.” Palermo replied, then before anyone else could move he’d cocked his gun and fired. The bullet hit the main man in the chest, he then ran, leading the other officers on a chase. He twisted and dived, pivoted and moved. Pushing himself to his limits. His blood sang, this was exhilarating.

He heard a bullet whizz passed him and whistled. “Poor shot!” He yelled, turning around and firing off a few rounds before hiding again. He knew he wouldn’t make it out alive, and that was fine. He just needed to buy the others some time. Enough time to get safely to where the meet up point was.

“Come out, you cannot win.” Someone barked.

“Fuck off, pig.” He shouted, turning the gun around the corner and firing. He heard someone yell and smiled, clearly he’d hit someone.

He ducked low and ran. He heard someone shout and heard bullets hit where he’d been standing mere moments ago, laughing as he ran. This was a lot of fun. He ducked and weaved, twisting through the barriers and ensuring the pigs couldn’t find him. He stopped when he got toward the stairs. He took a breath and then yelled. “Over here, fuckers.” He turned and let loose.

The bullets flew from his gun, he didn’t know how many pigs they hit, but it felt good. When the blowback came, that also felt good. The bullets wracked his body like a thousand paper cuts, but they were nothing. They were killing him, but he had already died. The moment he had learned Andres had died, he had died as well. There had been no reason to live after that except to carry out one last heist in Andres’ memory.

Eventually, the shooting stopped, and his body gave way. He fell backwards. His breathing sounded ragged to his own ears. He blinked and his vision blurred. There was someone standing over him. He recognised the face.

“Martin, I’ve waited such a long time.” The voice said.

“Andres.” Martin whispered.

“It’s time, come home. Come home to me.” Andres replied.

Martin smiled. “Gladly.” He blinked and then closed his eyes


	35. Tokyo IV

**Chapter 35: Tokyo IV**

They heard the gunshot go off over the radio, heard Palermo whisper something and then heard the line go static. Silene looked at the others and sighed. She shut the radio off to ensure that they couldn’t be tracked, ripped it off her jumpsuit and handed it to Rio who broke it. Something he did with the other radios as well. The Serbians would burn the truck and everything else once they had gotten away.

She looked around the truck and said. “He did what he’d said he’d do.”

The others nodded and then they fell silent. The road was slightly bumpy for the truck bounced up and down a few times, thankfully none of the bags filled with the gold moved that much, and so they were able to sit without worry. Hopefully everything had gone smoothly for the first truck and it was making its way to Valencia where they would then board a ship and move out to safety. How the Professor had organised that she didn’t know, but she was sure it would go off without too many issues, just like the first time.

She turned to look at Rio then and whispered. “Are you okay?” He nodded.

“I think so, are you?”

“Yes.” She replied.

“Maybe we should talk about that thing we said we’d talk about?” He suggested.

Tokyo shook her head. “No, we’ll wait until we’re away from here.”

“Okay.” Silence fell between them then as the truck continued to move through the winding streets and the twisting avenues of Madrid. At one point, Manilla who was at the front of the truck called back.

“There’s a check point up ahead, everyone stay silent.”

They sat in silence for what felt like an age. Nobody moved, nobody so much as breathed. They all knew what would happen if something went wrong and they were caught. Arrests, and death, no trials. Not even the King would be able to save them. Eventually the truck started moving and they all exhaled. It was a relief. Manilla called up from the front.

“I think there’s been chaos at the Bank.”

“Why?” Silene called back.

“Saw something on the T.V. screen in one of the guys’ offices, the protestors are attacking the cops.” Manilla said.

“Good.” Silene replied. After that they fell quiet again as the long drive to Valencia and the port began. Occasionally someone would share a joke and they would laugh, but other than that nobody said anything and thus the monotony threatened to overtake them. At some point, she sidled up close to Rio and fell asleep with her head on his shoulder. It felt nice; he didn’t push her away and didn’t protest and she allowed herself to relax for the first time in what felt like months.

Eventually, she was woken up by a light shake to the shoulder. She blinked and found Rio looking at her. “We’re here.” He said.

The truck had stopped and the back was opened. The Serbian nodded to her, and slowly they all got out and took bags handed to them by the Serbian. They saw the ship a few feet away, two other trucks were parked near them. Silene smiled, they were so close. She walked with her bags onto the ship and handed them to a young man she’d seen once or twice before at the monastery. She then waited in the middle of the ship as the others came and did the same.

When the last person had brought their bags onto the ship, she heard someone cough, turned around and smiled as she saw The Professor. She ran to him and hugged him. “You did it.” She said.

“We did it.” He replied. He then looked around at them all. “We all did it. We brought the resistance back and won. I am proud of us all, and I know that you have made sacrifices. I promise that now you will get to live your lives as you wish.”

Silene looked at him then and said. “Palermo didn’t make it.”

The Professor nodded. “I know.”

The ship’s horn went off then, indicating that they were departing. The Professor smiled. “We’re free.” That was greeted by a cheer, prompting Silene to smile.

_The ship went off to a new world, a freer world. We had done what we had set out to do, and it felt good. Victory tasted sweet. The resistance had won, for us, for Spain, for the world, and most importantly for you_


End file.
